Four Leaves
by Nathaniel Lent
Summary: The Yotsuba Clan is feared as the most powerful, even among the Ten Master Clans of Japan. This fear is instilled not only by their lethality, but also by their near impenetrable secrecy. Now it has become public knowledge that the Clan has sent not one, but two of their youngest to First High School; something that foretells nothing positive… or does it?
1. Chapter 1: Enrollment

Summary: The Yotsuba Clan is feared as the most powerful, even among the Ten Master Clans of Japan. This fear is instilled not only by their lethality, but also by their near impenetrable secrecy. Now it has become public knowledge that the Clan has sent not one, but two of their youngest to First High School; something that foretells nothing positive… or does it?

Chapter 1: Enrollment

Even as a small child, Shiba Tatsuya was not one who was easily intimidated; in fact it was quite the opposite. The cold-glare and seemingly permanent analytical look was enough to unnerve most adults, much 10 year old children. It would be a lie to say that his tendency to drive others away never hurt him. He had often thought, perhaps cynically, that since he could feel no urges, no real "want" for anything in the first place, this should not bother him in the slightest. His mother had made sure of that with her experiments.

Perhaps it was because of this sort of childhood that Tatsuya disregarded the tugging discomfort he felt as he confronted his Aunt Maya in one of the many small meeting rooms in the Yotsuba's extensive compound. Maya was already seated in a comfortable armchair sipping from a small tea cup; the entire scene looked innocent enough: an aunt and her young nephew sitting down to have a talk. The air between the two however, was anything but casual.

"Oba-ue, you asked for me?" Tatsuya asked.

His aunt took her time in answering; setting down the beverage in her hands. "Tatsuya-san, I sent Hayama-san for you only 10 minutes ago. You should have taken your time in coming."

Despite these words, the relationship between aunt and nephew, or rather, servant and master, had long been established. As long as he did not do anything rash, Maya would adopt a policy of negligence. Though it was callous, this was the most accurate representation of their relationship. This was Tatsuya's honest opinion.

"Regardless, I had the time to come." And yet Tatsuya refused to play Maya's game, something that few had the courage, or the power to do.

As if disregarding this, Maya nodded her head slightly in acknowledgement of his words and continued in her sweet tone. "As you are aware, Miyuki-san will be attending First High School in the fall. As her guardian, you will be attending alongside her." So far there were no surprises. Tatsuya had already expected to attend First High, otherwise performing his duty as Miyuki's guardian would only be made unnecessarily difficult.

"Tatsuya-san, "Yotsuba" will be the family name used by yourself and Miyuki-san from today onwards."

At this, the temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees. Despite the many conjectures he had come up with, Tatsuya had not expected this situation.

As if time had stalled, it was a few seconds before he had formulated something proper to say. Fortunately he wasn't as arrogant as to emulate the type of TV hero that had been popular in the past and shout out, 'What are your intentions?!' or anything like that.

"Would this not simply bring about the animosity of the Ten Master Clans?" Having kept them under the name Shiba for such a long time, it was unlikely that their Aunt would suddenly have a change of heart. Even someone far less aware than Tatsuya would realize that there was some ulterior motive for the action.

"They have no reason to interfere with the Yotsuba as long as the Yotsuba do not interfere with them." This was true, though not because the other Clans had any consideration for the Yotsuba, rather, it would not be worth it to get mixed up with the Yotsuba Clan.

"I see, is this all?" Having no choice but to accept what information he had gotten, Tatsuya looked to finish this conversation as soon as possible.

"One more thing, inform Miyuki-san to adjust her speech accordingly. it wouldn't do for the Yotsuba to be misrepresented by one we have formally recognized." With a small chuckle, Maya dismissed Tatsuya with a wave of her hand. For now, the reason as to why Maya would suddenly allow the siblings to use the name "Yotsuba," would stay with her.

~~-Line Break-~~

"Eh?! Oba-sama did?" Despite her normally perfect countenance, much like Tatsuya, Miyuki was unable to hide her surprise when given the news that both she and her brother would be allowed to use the name Yotsuba. Initially she had only expected to take the name "Yotsuba Miyuki" some years in the future, when she would inherit the Clan from Maya. While she sat in one of the decently sized chairs in her disproportionately large room, Miyuki received the news from her brother.

"Correct, from today onwards we are to be addressed with our family name as Yotsuba." Tatsuya replied from the immaculate desk while reading through several sheets of paper. Though he had full confidence in his little sister's abilties, the recent developments had caused him to worry rather incessantly, and thus the current situation was born.

While mentally wincing at some of the borderline dangerous phrases used, including things about equality and such, Tatsuya made his best attempt to answer Miyuki's questions on the surprise that their Aunt had suddenly dropped on them.

Nonetheless, Miyuki was intelligent enough to recognize that if her brother had all the answers, he would have already disclosed them without an interrogation. Having been so impulsive, Miyuki's face colored with embarrassment.

"Unfortunately, I already see potential backlash for this decision. Revealing the identity of two Yotsuba at First High School will not do much in the manner of progressing forward in any manner." Tatsuya intentionally used the words, "progressing forward" rather than making an arbitrary statement about making peace with the other Clans. In the first place, the Yotsuba had no such intentions.

Either way, the siblings had little choice but to go along with whatever their Aunt wished. In the fall, they would attend First High School as the Yotsuba siblings. From the middle of August, when the Yotsuba surreptitously leaked the rumor, it was passed around in underground circles that the Yotsuba would be sending one of their own to First High School. Undoubtedly, this news also ended up with the Ten Master Clans.

Finally, September arrived in a storm of fair weather.

~~-Line Break -~~

If one had been in front of the main building at First High School this September morning, they would have undoubtedly seen two figures, one female, and one male. And despite the latter's best efforts to calm her down, the female was clearly in an incensed state.

Tatsuya bore the duty of listening to his little sister's complaints, something he was happy to do. Nevertheless, if she was overheard by anyone, she would undoubtedly regret it later on.

"I cannot understand why Onii-sama, who holds the highest written score on the entrance exam among first year students, should be placed in Course 2!" To accompany these words, Miyuki glared at the most notable difference between the two uniforms that brother and sister wore.

Hers was emblazoned with the flower petal emblem of the school.

His was graced with nothing but an empty space.

Looking to calm his sister's righteous(?) fury, Tatsuya tried to appeal to her logic first. "Miyuki, you know that the school exams are structured in a way that values technical skill over theory."

"Even so, I cannot accept that the school would disregard the results of the written test so blatantly!" The difference between the two was stark: Miyuki was thin and willowy, beautiful to the extent that, even if one wanted to be jealous of her, they would simply be rendered incapable. Even sulking as she was currently, the air around her held the sort of majesty that made people wonder, "Is this what is known as charisma?"

In nearly direct contrast, Tatsuya was what people would call "normal." He was slightly taller than most other males his age, though possessed no truly defining features besides his striking blue eyes.

Looking at Miyuki with eyes that would fit one dealing with a rebellious child, Tatsuya fell upon the reflex of patting his sister's head while he spoke to her.

"Miyuki, whether it is Course 1 or Course 2 it doesn't matter to me. What's more important today is that I get to see my wonderful sister's performance as the Freshman Student Representative."

At this, Miyuki had a slight blush as Tatsuya removed his hand. "Onii-sama… to say that Miyuki is more important…" It seemed as if all of a sudden, her mood had improved. Though Tatsuya had the feeling that his words were being horribly misinterpreted, he couldn't complain about the results.

Today was admission day for the 200 new students of First High School, and while the ceremony began at 11, the two siblings were here two hours early in order to prepare and do a quick rehearsal before the ceremony actually went through.

On Miyuki's part, she had been reluctant to trouble her brother to the extent that he had to come to school 2 hours earlier than necessary purely for her. For Tatsuya, he had already taken it for granted that he would be following her. His concern had long since passed the point where he protected her out of duty.

"Now, show this useless brother of yours his beautiful sister's shining moment." Even if they were publicly known as "Yotsuba," he doubted that the school, more specifically the student council, would be as brazen as to openly discriminate against them.

After protesting for a short while that Tatsuya was anything but useless, Miyuki bade farewell with a slight bow and left for the rehearsal after being pacified once again. Tatsuya however, proceeded to a small bench on the campus. It was slightly surrounded by trees and allowed for some degree of privacy as he pulled out his personal screen-type terminal (He disliked the digital-type) and continued through a book that he had started some time ago.

It was perhaps an hour before there was anybody else to pay him any mind. The whispers going around however, were anything but kind.

"Isn't he…"

"How eager he is, even if he's an extra."

Undoubtedly they were all staring the lack of an 8 petaled flower on his chest. Once again Tatsuya was made aware to the lack of tact by his peers when compared to Miyuki. Then again it would be unfair to compare most people to his hyper-competent sister. Though he did not care much such talk in the first place, the sudden halt of whispering alerted him to the fact that there was something unusual going on.

"Excuse me." Looking up from his terminal, Tatsuya was greeted by the sight of a young woman looking down at him with an almost luminescent smile on her face. A twinkle on her left wrist notified Tatsuya of the presence of a CAD. (Casting Assistance Device)

Normally the only ones on campus allowed to carry one around on the campus would be the teachers and select students. These particular students would be on the executive board… in other words, the Student Council.

"Yes? Is there something is there something amiss?" Seeing no way to escape the situation in front of him, Tatsuya met her eyes while giving the most noncommittal answer he could without being discourteous.

In response, the female in front of him shook her head, the black tresses that were kept in place by a ribbon shaking back and forth. Without a doubt she would be called a "beauty" in the eyes of many from both genders.

"Nothing wrong, my name is Saegusa Mayumi, spelled as Sae (seven) Gusa (leaves) and written as Saegusa. Student Council President of First High School." Tatsuya felt a certain amount of apprehension at meeting one of the "numbers" so quickly after enrolling. Nevertheless, he did not let it show on his face.

"I was simply surprised that you were using a screen-type terminal."

'Is that really something that a school executive should be saying?' Tatsuya wanted to ask; though he did not do something as discourteous as to say so out loud. Though they were not nearly the worst offense one could be accused of, the school generally discouraged the use of virtual terminals despite their increased convenience. For young magicians whose perceptions were in essence their reality, becoming engrossed in the use of a non-corporeal system would only stymie their growth.

In the same vein Tatsuya, who utilized the less common screen-type terminal, was a rarity among students who dismissed the negative effects of the digital-type terminal as myth.

Seeing that he was not responding, Mayumi elected to continue with her own line of questioning.

"May I ask what you were reading so intently?"

"A book on the theories of Sustained Gravity Control-type magic sequences." Tatsuya answered without thinking; it took only an instant for him to recognize his folly. Something made possible by Mayumi's inability to hide the growing amazement in her widening eyes.

'Could this person be someone amazing?' Is what she told herself. Unfortunately for Tatsuya, who had wanted to avoid attention if possible, he had just attracted the attention of one of the most influential people on campus.

"Sustained Gravity-Control type magic… then you've already planned on becoming a magic engineer?" One simply did not dive this deeply into the subject if they were not already fully invested into their future. Perhaps it was this sureness of purpose and freedom to choose that made Mayumi somewhat jealous of her new underclassman. For someone like her, the eldest daughter of the Saegusa Clan, such choices were not open to her.

"My aim is to create a Sustained Gravity-Control type magic sequence Thermonuclear Reactor." Tatsuya's response was not only unexpected to Mayumi, but also a pleasant(?) surprise.

"Is that so... then would it be troublesome if I were to ask you to eat lunch with the Student Council tomorrow?" At this entirely random turn of events, even Tatsuya was unable to completely hide his surprise.

"Is there a reason for doing so?" Mayumi's intentions were still completely out of Tatsuya's thoughts. What correlation could the subject of his studies and the Student Council have? Fortunately for them both, Mayumi decided to elaborate.

"One of my friends on the Student Council is greatly interested in the same subject as you. I simply thought it would be advantageous to both of you to speak about the subject."

Mayumi's tone and body language showed no signs of lying. Tatsuya was grateful, or perhaps relieved that he was able to take these words at face value. Though it was his business to be suspicious, even Tatsuya would be slightly troubled at having to suspect Mayumi of attempting some sort of plot.

"I am very grateful for the opportunity, however I must consult my sister beforehand. Our schedules are rather closely integrated." At this, Mayumi nodded in understanding.

"Of course, your sister is also welcome should she wish to come!" Said with such exuberance, it was hard to doubt Mayumi's sincerity even if the offer was more a courtesy than anything.

"I will mention it to her. However, Saegusa-senpai, I believe it is almost time for the opening ceremony to begin." During the entire time Tatsuya had been occasionally glancing at this watch in order to avoid being late for the First-Years Entrance Ceremony. The event started at 11 whereas it was now 10:30.

"Oh, you're right. Well I should best be going then. I hope to see you tomorrow." And as quickly as she had come, Mayumi ran off towards the auditorium where the ceremony would occur. Tatsuya quickly followed after stowing away his terminal.

~~-Line Break-~~

"Um, excuse me." Once again Tatsuya looked up to find another young woman next to him. "Is the seat next to you taken?" The girl was around the same height as Miyuki was with a slight bob cut and small hair ornaments hanging from her bangs. The most interesting feature however, was the fact that she was wearing glasses. In an age where nearsightedness was near non-existent thanks to the existence of drugs, the small number of people who wore glasses did so were either doing so as a fashion statement or, as was more likely here, suffered from an increased sensitivity to Psion emissions.

"It's open." Though he did not think much of having someone next to him, it was more preferable than if a grimy muscle block had decided to take the seat. Speaking of which, the clear segregation between Course 1 and Course 2 students was made definitive when Tatsuya entered the auditorium.

Course 1 students would sit in the front, while Course 2 students sat in the back despite there being no such school policy dictating that it should be so. Ironically, Tatsuya thought, the greatest division is brought about by the student's own unwillingness to break the status quo.

Meanwhile, the girl had seated herself next to him and begun to introduce herself. "My name is Shibata Mizuki, though Mizuki is fine. What is yours?"

Tatsuya forced himself to not show a grimace as he spoke. "Yotsuba Tatsuya. The pleasure is mine." As he offered his hand to shake, he could see the spark of recognition in her eyes.

As if out of reflex, Mizuki reached out to grab his hand before speaking almost to herself. "Yotsuba…? That's certainly…" She glanced at the chest area of his uniform confirm before speaking again. as if to make sure she hadn't seen incorrectly. At this point, she seemed to be out of words to say, her nervous eyes darting back and forth.

"Unexpected?" Tatsuya replied easily. Having already expected many similar situations, the answers he had were almost prerecorded. He also wasn't as childish as to be offended by something he had already foreseen as inevitable. "I assure you that you won't be the only one saying that."

Drawing little comfort from Tatsuya's words, Mizuki nevertheless did not move from her seat and likewise, did not touch on the subject further. This was most likely the best course of action seeing as how the lights in the auditorium had dimmed slightly, signifying the beginning of the ceremony.

Any remaining chatter was quickly quelled, not by yells from teachers, but by the single girl now making her way to center stage with unparallelled grace and poise. The entire crowd seemed almost mesmerized by her presence before she started speaking.

"My fellow students of First High School, I am Yotsuba Miyuki, your Freshman Class Representative." The previously awed silence now became slightly tinged with… fear, and a little reverence? Even the most lowly magician knew of the name Yotsuba, something that Tatsuya and MIyuki were all too aware of as the latter began her speech.

Though she did edge on some of the more dangerous phrases that Tatsuya had encouraged her to leave out, Miyuki's speech was overall something that many admired. It was simply too difficult for many of the students to dislike her as they originally hoped to; the charisma that seemed to simply burst outward as a hallmark of royalty, manifested itself in this small 15 year old girl. With this, a polite applause rang through the auditorium as her words ended.

Tatsuya's attention however, was taken up by an entirely different matter. Since the beginning of Miyuki's speech, or more specifically, since he had revealed his identity as a Yotsuba to Mizuki, he had attracted the attention of the red-headed girl in front of him. It was made clear by her seemingly lost looking gaze straight ahead (the stage was downward of where they were sitting) and unmoving pose that she had been listening in on the conversation between Tatsuya and Mizuki.

Not one to start an unnecessary conflict, Tatsuya walked past the girl, who was still staring straight ahead. As soon as he passed her however, the girl nearly leapt out of her seat to grab his wrist. The grip was not so tight as to be painful, but there was no mistaking it as a semi-hostile gesture.

Now normally Tatsuya wouldn't have allowed her to grab him, much less allow her to maintain a proper grip; unfortunately, Mizuki was following right behind him. If he had proceeded with his initial reaction, the result of having two girls fall over and trip down the stairs was less than desirable to say the least.

"Hold on one moment, Yotsuba Tatsuya." At the calling of his name, Tatsuya slowly turned around to face the girl. She was of average build with bright red hair; she was a girl that could be called "pretty" instead someone like Miyuki who people would refer to as "beautiful."

"I believe the proper thing to do is introduce yourself first." The reply was short and curt, meant to disconcert the other party.

"Chiba Erika, though that is not my purpose. What do the Yotsuba plan on doing here in the school?" The question was blunt, and poorly presented, but perhaps that was what suited this girl the best.

"Even if I had a reason to tell you, I can't say what I don't know." Tatsuya didn't see any reason in concealing the fact that he had no idea what his Aunt was planning. Having this girl's suspicions on him, especially now that he knew her family name, would not be advantageous for him in any manner. The Chiba were masters of their craft, having earned the name "Magicians of the Sword" among the highest echelons of magical society.

Relaxing her grip after a few moments, Erika then moved her hand up to offer a handshake. Though most would have criticized her for believing so easily, Tatsuya, who's wrist she had grabbed, understood perfectly why she had no suspicions. Trained as she no doubt was, Erika was likely able to read body language; given that she had also been able to feel his pulse at the time, she felt confident enough that he was not lying.

"My apologies then."

"Apology accepted, though we should probably move to the classrooms if you do not plan to be late." Throughout all this, Mizuki had been nervously watching the two from behind Erika, additionally, most students had already descended the stairs and filtered out of the auditorium.

"T-That's right… Chiba-san, Yotsuba-san, lets get going." Mizuki's proclamation ended the standoff-ish air between the other two as they descended the stairs. They both however, made a slightly sour expression as they heard themselves being addressed that way.

"Tatsuya is fine."

"Erika is fine"

"Eh?" While the two of them said almost the same thing, Mizuki seemed to be overwhelmed for a moment before seemingly making up her mind. "T-Then, it's fine if you call me Mizuki as well!"

While Erika made an annoyed look and turned away from Tatsuya while walking, the latter simply continued on as if nothing had happened.

As the trio walked out of the room, it was clear that the atmosphere around them wasn't comfortable, though it definitely wasn't as bad as to be called "hostile" as it had several moments ago.

~~-Line Break-~~

"Welcome to the Magic University Affiliated First High School." Those were the first words out of the teacher's mouth as he started his lecture on their entrance into First High.

"As Course 2 students, your technical abilities were judged to be below that of Course 1 students. Do not assume however, that this makes you any less important than anyone else. With hard work and dedication, you can still become a splendid magician."

Anyone who heard these words would undoubtedly be skeptical of their legitimacy. Indeed, First High was a top-rate school in of itself, even if one should be a Course 2 student. As a result, many who were attending were here mainly because they would gain the ability to say they had graduated from First High School.

Soon after, the teacher departed the room, leaving the students on their own. As soon as he did so, Tatsuya opened the terminal installed in the desk he was sitting at and began to rapidly go through a large number of windows.

"Whoa, that's really old school!"

A rather loud interruption came in the form of a young man who was approximately the same height as Tatsuya. In direct contrast however, if you considered Tatsuya as a speedy assassin, this young man would bring about the image of a bulky bruiser.

"I never see anyone use the keyboard and mouse anymore instead of a digital display." Though he unsure at first, Tatsuya now saw the earnest interest expressed in the young man's eyes. As if suddenly realizing that he was invading personal space, he suddenly backed up to a respectable distance.

"Sorry about that. I'm Saijou Leonhard, though Leo is just fine." With a warm smile that showed no signs of deceit, Leo offered his hand in greeting, to which Tatsuya accepted.

"Yotsuba Tatsuya, nice to meet you."

"Yotsuba…" Instead of a grimace, the look that came over Leo's face was instead thoughtful. "Well that's fine with me." he shrugged it off nonchalantly. "My dad is two-thirds and my mom is half so that's why I have a foreign name."

Tatsuya's surprise was quickly quelled as Leo explained his heritage. Though the Ten Master Clans held considerable political clout, it was not a matter of great concern for those outside of the 100 Clans. For someone like Leo, who's family was not even domestically born, the name Yotsuba would simply be known as "important."

"That aside, what were you doing anyways? Lunch break is still half an hour away but since this class is already over." Seemingly unperturbed, Leo continued his line of questioning without a care.

"I doubt someone like you would understand even if he explained it to you." Erika had come up from beside Leo, dragging Mizuki along. The almost casual rudeness seemed to be second nature to her by now.

"This woman... " Seeing Leo about to explode, Tatsuya decided to quickly intervene before it got any worse. He silently remarked to himself however, that the two were very similiar.

"Now hold on Leo just getting angry will just end up with you playing into her hands."

"...Saijou Leonhard, nice to meet you." Faced with Tatsuya's cold logic, Leo opted to introduce himself with a rather sulky expression. After the two girls had finished introducing themselves, Tatsuya once again found himself at the center of attention.

"So Tatsuya-kun, what _were _you doing?" Of course it would be Erika who brought up this point again as he closed the terminal.

"I was simply registering for electives. We don't have to get it done until next week, but I found it more convenient to simply get it done now."

"But Tatsuya's pretty proficient with that keyboard huh? After all, nobody really uses an actual one anymore." Leo's observation was in fact, spot on. With the advent of voice transcription technology, many people had simply made the switch from typing out everything and proceeded to speak out their compositions. The main reason people used keyboards nowadays were for nostalgia's sake.

"It's faster to get it done with a keyboard for me, that's all there is to it." Tatsuya threw out the completely pragmatic answer without a thought.

"Ah, at first I thought that Tatsuya-kun was one of those high-tech men you see in movies, but he's actually pretty old-school huh?" Though they had been at each other's throats only a few hours before, it seemed as if Erika had the kind of personality that wasn't going to make a large fuss over such "small matters."

"Well now that we're past that why don't we get going to lunch? There's only a few minutes left until the break anyways." Leo was understandably eager to get to lunch. Despite his impressive build making it easy to forget, he was still a boy at the age where he would grow the most.

Before anybody else could respond, Tatsuya interjected with some unwelcome(?) news. "Sorry, I'd like to join you, but I have to meet up with my sister."

"Eh, Tatsuya-kun's sister?" Surprisingly, the one who let out this exclamation was Mizuki. "Could it be that Tatsuya-kun's sister is the Freshman Representative Yotsuba MIyuki-san?"

"That's right."

"Eh… no way. Are you two twins?" Tatsuya could only let out a wry smile as Erika instantly launched into the question he had received many times.

"No, I was born in April while my sister was born in March. Had I been born one month later or she one month earlier, we would not be in the same year group at all. Though I don't understand why people mistake us as twins when we are clearly not."

"I wouldn't say that. You and your sister have the same kind of… resemblance?" Leo tried to search for a word that fit the description in his mind.

"So you're saying that both Miyuki and I are similar in physical appearance?" Though Leo's meaning should have been fairly clear, it was a result of both the uncertainty and Tatsuya's own sense of disbelief. When comparing the two in terms of physical attractiveness, it was hard to say, no matter how generously you graded him, that Tatsuya came close to Miyuki.

Whereas his little sister had received large amounts of love letters (considered fan letters by Tatsuya) in middle school, he himself had never received even one. Even his own opinion had Miyuki far above himself if graded in terms of purely physical traits.

"N-No that's not it. Tatsuya-kun and his sister have the same… aura about them." Mizuki spoke up from behind Leo as Tatsuya finally stood up from his desk.

"Aura… As I thought, Mizuki has really good eyes."

The other two looked at Tatsuya as if he had grown another hand.

"Eh, good eyes? But Mizuki is wearing glasses." Erika blurted this out in clear confusion.

"No, you misunderstand me. Those glasses have no degree, am I right?" As if a switch had been flipped, Mizuki's eyes widened and hardened to an alarming degree.

"T-That's... " Her voice filled with chagrin, perhaps at her secret being discovered?

Whatever she was about to say, Tatsuya had neither the inclination, nor the time to inquire as the bell rang for lunch break.

~~-Line Break-~~

"Hey Mari…" The eldest daughter of the Saegusa called out her friend's name while staring out taking a break from the paperwork that had resulted from the new freshman orientation.

"What is it Mayumi?" Though the short haired girl turned around from her place in one of the many chairs assembled at the conference table with a rather annoyed tone, this was a fairly normal occurrence. It hadn't been necessary for any of the others to come in today so it had only been Mari and Mayumi for the entire day.

"What do you think about taking a break? You've been working all day without pause." Though this may have sounded like a typical excuse, this was actually the case. Mari had been on patrol through the campus for the past 2 hours. When she wasn't doing so, she had others reporting in to her, taking only 10 minutes for a lunch break halfway through the extremely busy day.

"I am on break, I'll be off on patrol in again in 5 minutes."

"Eh… then at least let me come with you." The whiny tone she used may have irritated many others, but Mari had long since learned that this was her friend's actual personality. "And before you say it, I've already finished all the work I need to for today."

Mari's face colored a light red as she closed her previously open mouth, having had her intentions read so easily. "Really you…"

The helpless return was all she could come up with having been beaten out before she had even started. Either way, it wasn't like Mari disliked having Mayumi come around.

Mari could only sigh in disbelief at her friend's actions as both she and Mayumi began to make their way around the campus.

"So Mari, have you found any promising freshman today?"

"If by promising you mean troublemaking than yes. I've already had 2 arrests and school hasn't even officially begun yet." The Public Morals Committee chief shook her head back and forth slowly; it seemed as if sometimes she was the only one with common sense around here.

"What about the new Student Representative? Seeing as how she's a part of the Yotsuba Clan, I would've thought that Mayumi disliked her." Though this was a perfectly reasonable question, Mayumi still let out a visible frown at the sound of it.

"That isn't true. Though she may be from the Yotsuba, Miyuki-san was nothing but exemplary today. Both in her behavior and intentions." Having long been in the public eye, Mayumi had long since learned to read people's true intentions behind a mask. Though this clearly wasn't the case when putting up a mask of her own, considering she had always been accepted as herself.

"Is that so? Then what about any other freshman? After all, you were in charge of greeting them as they came in the door today." Mari's voice was laced with a slight accusation to which Mayumi shrunk a bit. Though she had been meant to simply greet from the door, Mayumi had decided to wander off on her own.

Deciding that it would be easiest to move away from this topic by simply answering Mari's question, Mayumi hastily proceeded.

"Well there was one." The answer was said very quietly as the two rounded the corner to the courtyard. "He was sitting at a bench by himself, the only Course 2 student among a sea of Course 1 students that were all whispering about him no doubt." She spat out the 2nd part rather disdainfully.

"I see, so what about him was so special? I doubt being able to take criticism was what made him so interesting." Mari too, wore a look of disgust as they continued to walk. She was hoping that this year she would be able to stamp out some of the attitude that remained in the members of the Public Morals Committee.

"Well when I began talking to him, I realized that he was reading something; on a screen-type terminal mind you!" Mayumi's voice gradually grew louder, becoming more engrossed in telling her story.

"I thought it was just some sort of novel, but after asking him guess what the subject was?"

Mari could clearly feel the almost childlike excitement that Mayumi exuded. "Please, tell me before you explode in happiness…"

After letting out a small pout, Mayumi nonetheless returned to her story. "Mou Mari… he was reading about a Sustained Gravity Control-type Magic!"

Mari's eyes widened in surprise; not only was the material way above what other kids his age would be reading, but this student's interests seemed to lie in a place very close to one of their friend's.

"Don't you think Rin-chan would be thrilled to meet him?" Mayumi's optimism knew no bounds at this point.

"Well I don't know about thrilled… but she would be interested nonetheless." To be honest, Mari didn't know if the Student Council Accountant could be "thrilled" by anything considering her normally cold personality.

"I know! That's why I invited him to have lunch with the student council tomorrow." It was clear that Mayumi was almost bursting with pride at her own "genius."

"Well… that's your call. Anyways, what's his name?"

At this Mayumi froze.

"Mayumi…"

"J-Just wait Mari, I'm sure that I can remember if you just wait a second." After a being part of a life that involved schmoozing with some politician or another for her entire life, it was hard to believe that Mayumi was the kind of person to have trouble with names.

"Don't tell me you forgot to ask his name…" Even Mari, who was by all means less socially adept than Mayumi, would not forget this simple step of getting to know someone. Sometimes her friend really amazed her… not always in a good way.

Mayumi's cheeks were a flaming red at this point; if Suzune ever heard about it, she would no doubt never let Mayumi forget it.

As if it had been planned, as soon as the two left the courtyard and headed towards the entrance gates, a large commotion got their attention.

In an instant, the blushing and embarrassed Mayumi composed herself and moved forward as quickly as possible without bumping into anyone on the way, Mari close behind. About 20 feet away from the group of students who were making the commotion, Mayumi saw the beginnings of an Activation Sequence and immediately raised her hand.

Modern magic was based on the manipulating of information bodies written in Psions. Manipulation of Psions would result in the manipulation of real world phenomena as speed with which Psions are written is the processing power of magic, the scale to which they can be built is the capacity of magic, and the strength with which magic rituals can rewrite the Eidos is interference strength. Currently, these three comprehensively are called magic power.

The role of CAD is to take Psions initially provided by the magician and transform it into Psions that the magician can use to manipulate phenomena: the magic ritual.

In the case that this flow of psions from Magician to CAD and back was disrupted, the rewriting of physical phenomena would also be disrupted.

In this same vein, Mayumi formed a Psion bullet and fired it through the crowd of students to shatter the expanding Activation Sequence. Though one of the most basic types of magic in essence, the fact that Mayumi was so accurate with the technique and avoided harming the initial caster spoke volumes about her talent and proficiency with magic.

"Stop right there! Using attack magic on others for any reason other than self-defense is not just a school violation! It's a criminal offense!"

Seizing the moment of shock provided by the shattering of the girl's magic sequence, Mari brought the attention of the group to herself. The CAD in her left hand already held an expanded activation sequence; it was of little doubt what would happen if anybody attempted anything further.

"That girl over there who just tried to activate magic, as well as the boy with the CAD out and the two students over there, you're coming with me for questioning." In this mindset where the other two parties were still reeling over what happened, it was very simply for Mari to issue uninterrupted orders.

All of a sudden, two students walked up from behind the crowd. They seemed neither arrogant nor afraid of the two upperclassmen. Mari recognized one of them as the new Student Representative. Her eyes narrowed instantly; they had not looked to be involved parties initially.

The next words from the male's mouth shocked her.

"Sorry, we took the prank too far." The deadpan tone implied that he wasn't kidding.

"Prank?" Given the situation, there was little else Mari could say.

"The Morisaki Clan's 'Quick Draw' is known even among the Hundred Families. Apparently it got a little too life like for everyone."

While the A smirk appeared on Mari's face as she began to see where this first year was going. "If that's the case, than why was that girl casting an attack magic?"

The sets of eyes that belonged to the crowd of students swung back and forth as they watched the verbal war going on between the two people.

"That would be a valid point if she had been casting such a magic in the first place. What she attempted just now was simply a bright flash of light that at most, would cause temporary blindness. No doubt she was trying to diffuse the situation. Rather, being able to start up an activation sequence so quickly after being surprised is truly praiseworthy."

At this, the previously murmuring crowd was quelled into silence. It was impossible to read what kind of magic was being cast before the spell was actually released unless using specialized equipment.

"Ho… you can read the activation sequence then?" The previously bloodcurdling look she had been giving him changed into one of admiration at this new revelation.

Prior to deployment, the activation sequence was simply a large block of data.

"While my technical skills aren't as developed as your own, I'm quite confident in my analysis." The almost cheat-like ability that many would consider "insane" was dismissed as simply analysis.

"It seems your misinformation skills are quite something as well." Mari fixed him with a glare as she spoke.

"Senpai, as my brother said, this was all really just a misunderstanding. We apologize for making such a ruckus." The one who stepped forward to prevent Tatsuya from being under investigation was Miyuki.

With her words and apologetic bow, any malice that Mari may have held onto at that point dissipated.

"It's fine right Mari?" Unexpectedly Mayumi came into the mix on the side of the first years. "Miyuki-chan, this was all really just a demonstration right?" The smile on her face seemed oddly strained.

Both Miyuki and Tatsuya nodded in response.

Sighing, Mari had little choice now. "If Mayumi says so." Still, she decided that she had found an interesting freshman today after all.

"You, what's your name?" She pointed at Tatsuya.

"First year Class 1-E, Yotsuba Tatsuya." Mari couldn't help but widen her eyes.

"I see, I'll remember that name." And as quickly as they had come, the two upperclassmen left, out of sight after rounding the corner.

~~-Line Break-~~

"Mari!"

As soon as they were out of sight, Mayumi shouted at Mari in clear panic. Though she had seen the signs of Mayumi's discomfort earlier, Mari was far too tactful to call her out on the spot. Doing so would have only brought greater chaos to the already confusing situation.

"What is it Mayumi?" Mari was rather stunned by the intense look Mayumi was giving her. Something of a cross between regret and crying.

"Mari… that was the freshman I was telling you about!"

It took Mari several seconds to process everything Mayumi said through their earlier conversation. If the freshman Mayumi was talking about was Tatsuya then that meant that…

"You've invited the Yotsuba to lunch with the Student Council. Mayumi, how could you do something like that without asking his name first?" Her friend had done some stupid things in the past, but those times had been nothing but a slap on the wrist compared to this.

"What should I do Mari…?" Looking down at her shoes, Mayumi was racking her brains for a way to amend the situation. Among the Ten Master Clans, the Yotsuba and Mayumi's own clan, the Saegusa, were the most influential. And while the Saegusa were always in the limelight, the Yotsuba Clan were the complete opposite. Needless to say, the two Clans did not get along well.

"You reap what you sow Mayumi." Despite her own misgivings about inviting a member of the enigmatic Yotsuba Clan to the Student Council for lunch, Mari figured that since the new Student Representative would be a part of the Council anyways, it wasn't something to panic about.

In the end, Mayumi could only accept the situation that she had brought about herself. She did have a rather significant question though. "Yotsuba Tatsuya…. why is he a Course 2 student."

Of course it was perfectly understandable why this was so confusing. The Yotsuba were known specifically for their power and talent in magic. For one of them to be put in the public eye without the ability that upheld the fearsome reputation, there had to be an underlying reason that the Yotsuba were hiding.

"It couldn't be that they want to spy on both levels of students could it?" Mari naively put out this opinion without thinking.

"No, that would be unnecessary." Seeing the puzzled look on Mari's face, Mayumi proceeded to explain. "With the Yotsuba's influence, they wouldn't need to install someone directly into the school in order to find the data on students." Rather than this, the Yotsuba would not even care to know about such an insignificant thing like the business of high school students.

Mayumi knew the power of the Yotsuba very well as the eldest daughter of the Saegusa. She had only seen the head of the Yotsuba Clan once at a party hosted by her father, Saegusa Koichi. The magician named the, "Witch of the Night," had not been especially intimidating when introducing herself to the guests; rather, the bewitching beauty that was not indicative of her age only served to attract others to her.

And yet, as she observed one of the most powerful magicians in the world, Mayumi slowly built up a sense of dread. Simply the mannerisms of the woman in front of her were unnatural. Moving from one guest to another as if they were nothing but pieces in an assembly line, the detached look in her eyes never faltering for the slightest moment. A countenance to deceive not only the world, but also herself.

Such a mindset cannot be natural.

Mayumi had said this to herself as her eyes stayed glued to Yotsuba Maya. And then, what made that night unforgettable was the sight of the very same blank expression given by her father as the Saegusa and Yotsuba heads met.

This was the world of adults- no, that would be a cynical opinion. This was the world of the Ten Master Clans. A place where weakness did not show, nor did strength.

Only actions would have a place here.

Mayumi shivered as she recalled the memory she had long since tried (and failed) to repress.

"Mayumi? Are you alright?" It was a testament to their friendship that, despite Mayumi having only been out of it for a few moments, Mari was already able to tell that there was something wrong.

Giving what she hoped was a comforting smile through her pale face, Mayumi tried to play it off as nothing.

"Just remembering some unpleasant things Mari." Though she said this, she could not shake the feeling that Tatsuya had the exact same expression as her father and Yotsuba Maya.

She couldn't imagine what experience had forged such a personality at such a young age.

~~-End-~~

A/N

The first chapter of a new story. Hopefully each character was correctly represented in everyone's eyes.

As this story picks up steam, I hope that I can get support from all the readers! Any comments or criticisms will be greatly appreciated.


	2. Chapter 2: The Student Council

Chapter 2: The Student Council

After leaving their friends at the train station, the Yotsuba siblings made their way home to the residence that could be seen as an upper class dwelling. The home was modern and relatively inconspicuous in the neighborhood it was located in, possessing 3 bedrooms and the usual kitchen, bathroom, and living room arrangements. Perhaps the only outstanding feature in the home was the large screen in the living room; certainly, it was excessively large when compared to that of a normal television.

And it was on this television that Tatsuya was currently conversing with their Yotsuba Maya.

"Encountering two members of the "Numbers," with one of them even being the eldest daughter of the Saegusa." Though she spoke like it was a surprise, Tatsuya knew well enough that Maya would have never allowed Miyuki and himself to attend First High without already knowing about the presence of any important personnel.

"Tatsuya-san, it seems as if you have a habit of attracting trouble." Normally, Maya would not speak with Tatsuya, but Miyuki during these calls. For the purpose of assessing the situation however, Tatsuya was much more prudent and pragmatic in his analysis of others.

I this same vein, he spoke his mind concerning the issue of the Saegusa. "I don't believe that Saegusa Mayumi should pose a threat to Miyuki's safety. Not only does the clan have no reason to interfere with us, but the public name of the Saegusa would be destroyed by such an action.

Given the completely emotionless description of the situation, Maya had to admit that she could not find a hole in the logic of her nephew. Nevertheless, she did not miss that he had refrained from mentioning his connection to the young woman.

"Very well. Then on to other business."

Suddenly Tatsuya was all ears. If his aunt found it fit to inform him of something then there was no other reason except that his involvement in the issue was necessary.

"Blanche has found a foothold within First High." This simple sentence was enough to answer most of the questions Tatsuya had mentally queued up in his mind. To one of the Ten Master Clans, who's livelihood could be said to rely on magic, an anti-magic terrorist group like Blanche was a nuisance that could not be ignored.

"If they make a move against us, they will be swiftly eradicated." Tatsuya held no interest in the almost pitiable activities of Blanche. Should they disturb him, and more importantly, Miyuki however, his execution of them would be swift and efficient.

It was more than likely that the few members of Blanche in the school were a part of the branch, "Egalite," the youth division of sorts.

Maya, satisfied with her nephew's answer, decided to end the conversation there. "Then Tatsuya-san, I will be relying on you. Good Night."

The sentence carried a double meaning. It was a normal farewell, but also the declaration: The Yotsuba will be free to assist you in this endeavor, should you need it.

"Good Night, Oba-ue." And with that, the connection was cut. After verifying that the call had ended and closing down the system, Tatsuya sat down on one of the couches that were arranged in a "U" shape in front of the television.

As if driven by clockwork, a knock came from the door. "Onii-sama, are you finished?"

Though Miyuki was the legitimate successor candidate for the Yotsuba family, and thus had the privilege to listen in on any call she so wished, her usual respect for her elder brother had led her to seldom taking advantage of such rights.

Moving quietly, Tatsuya approached the door with a certain air of mischief about him. As the door swung open suddenly, he was greeted with the sight of Miyuki in an open-shoulder white blouse and a black skirt, her eyes wide with shock at the abrupt opening of the door.

"Let me help you with that." Taking the heavy-looking tray from his sister's hands (it was filled with a tea set and snacks), Tatsuya could not keep the wry smile from his face. Similarly, Miyuki was still as surprised as to hand off the tray without being able to think about it, something she would have normally refused to do.

"..Mou, Onii-sama is a bully." Regaining her composure, Miyuki let out a small pout, "Moving so quietly as to be able to terrify Miyuki. Does this person not care if his little sister had spilled hot tea over herself?"

Though she wasn't completely serious, Tatsuya still spent the time to comfort her after setting down the tray at the table.

"Sorry, I did not mean to do something like scaring you." Though the excuse was slightly half-composed, the accusation had not been much better. More than that, Tatsuya raised a hand to run through his sister's black tresses, an apologetic look on his face all the while. At this a glazed look came over Miyuki's face, something that one would not expect from a simple pat on the head.

The amicable atmosphere successfully restored, both siblings took a seat at the couch that Tatsuya had formerly occupied alone. After Miyuki had poured the tea, they both picked up a cup, though only Tatsuya actually drank. Instead, MIyuki had elected to watch her brother's reaction.

"Delicious. Did you find this at the local market?" Miyuki's face lit up as Tatsuya expressed his satisfaction.

"Yes, it took a bit but was well worth the time for you, Onii-sama." Though he was slightly troubled by his sister's response, Tatsuya went to sample the butter biscuits that she had brought along.

"How are they?" Miyuki was relieved that she managed to keep the nervousness from showing in her question.

"Very good, better than most professionals." Though she knew that Tatsuya was flattering her excessively, it did not stop Miyuki from becoming flustered.

"Not at all! I still have lots to work on…" Nevertheless, the satisfied look on Tatsuya's face gave her no small amount of satisfaction. Truly, she was grateful that both she and her brother were able to have these moments together.

"Miyuki." Reluctantly breaking through his sister's reverie(?), Tatsuya called her name after another sip of the tea in his hands.

"What is it Onii-sama?"

"The Student Council President has invited me to lunch tomorrow, would you like to attend with me?" If his previous interruption had broken through, this statement simply smashed the previous atmosphere to bits. Though he understood full well that this may spoil his sister's mood, it wasn't as if Tatsuya could simply disappear from her for an hour tomorrow.

'_Then… Onii-sama is going no matter what?_' Miyuki was not tactless enough to say this out loud. Though she disliked it, it was quite simple for her to comprehend why denying an invitation from the Student Council would be unwise, especially given her new position and their recently discovered blood-relationship.

"I will gladly come along with you." Stowing away her temporary misgivings, Miyuki gave an answer befitting her image.

~~-Line Break-~~

The advent of modern transit had lead to several changes that were made with idea of privacy over socialization in mind. First of all, it was worth noting that it was no longer necessary to wait for a specific train to your preferred destination. Instead, there were now small "pods" that ran along the tracks, each able to reach a different destination. These pods were commonly separated into individual cubicles based on size; a private pod would incur an extra fee.

That said, it was now impossible to get into the fateful "first meeting" on the train to school that was depicted in many romance movies from the previous century. To get to First High School, there was more or less only one path from the train station that would leave you there.

It was because of this situation that Tatsuya and Miyuki no longer found themselves alone while they were walking to school.

"So Tatsuya, do you have any plans for lunch today?" Though it was unavoidable that this question would be asked, Tatsuya still mentally winced as Leo asked about his plans to dine today.

"Sorry Leo, the Student Council has invited Miyuki and myself to dine with them today." Leo had seen them at the station and joined them on the walk to school. About 5 minutes later, Mizuki, and by extension, Erika, had joined them.

"Eh? The Student Council? After the incident that occurred yesterday?" Mizuki was of course referencing the conflict that had happened between the Course 1 and 2 students yesterday.

"The President had extended the invitation prior to that transgression of the rules." Tatsuya quelled the disbelief with a simple statement. "Speaking of which, Leo, Erika." The two turned to look at him.

"I hope that sort of thing isn't a norm for you two. We were okay this time because Miyuki helped out, but if it becomes a regular thing, no amount of misinformation is going to help us."

Leo had the decency to look sheepish as he laughed nervously. Erika on the other hand, was defiant in her behavior. Partially because that was just how she was, and partially because it was Tatsuya who was reprimanding her.

"If they're the ones that start something I don't see why I should be the one to back down if I can step up to the challenge."

"Even if it means being expelled from school?" Of course the hastily thought up response was not going to stand up to the cold logic of Tatsuya. "What will making a scene accomplish in the first place?"

Though he did not elaborate, each individual there was tactful enough to understand that he was demonstrating his own argument. Starting an unnecessary argument with Erika would do nothing positive.

"Onii-sama, perhaps it isn't so good to be so critical." During this time, Miyuki had kept silent, if only to avoid interrupting her brother's little lecture. That said, it wasn't like she hadn't occupied his attention. She had been close enough for most people to do a double-take as they passed by, the distance between them was not one of siblings, even close ones.

The others looked a little surprised at hearing these words. It was the first time they had heard Miyuki scold Tatsuya; in fact, it was the first time they had not seen Miyuki extolling her brother's actions as justice incarnate.

Tatsuya however, had no such qualms. "Well that might be true, sorry Erika." Though this might be interpreted as arrogance by some, the fact that it was Tatsuya who said it, someone who almost never apologized, made it believable as a sincere apology.

"No, it's fine. I was also rash in my responses." Waving the palms of her hands back and forth, Erika reconsidered her own viewpoint. She was confrontational, but by no means ill-natured enough to aggravate a dispute that had already been peacefully settled.

"Then Onii-sama, I will see you at lunch."

"Yeah, see you then Miyuki." With the two exchanging smiles, Tatsuya watched Miyuki as she walked into the school building, the stares she attracted were not few.

"Tatsuya-kun is pretty weak against his sister huh?" Deciding to tease her friend(?) a bit, Erika brought this up as soon as Miyuki was out of earshot.

"I guess so, we are siblings after all." HIs voice as monotone as ever, Tatsuya responded without any of the embarrassment that would have been found in most other boys his age. Erika was rather disappointed.

"Tatsuya-kun, you really are…"

"Well if he didn't respond like that, it wouldn't be Tatsuya after all."

With Leo's interjection, the two girls shared a laugh at Tatsuya's expense.

~~-Line Break-~~

Tatsuya and Miyuki were currently walking down the hallway towards the Student Council room, having left Tatsuya's friends down in the cafeteria.

Though one may have thought that the two would have discussed their plan of action before they entered their Student Council room, this particular pair of siblings were well versed enough in dancing around conversation that this was unnecessary.

That said, Tatsuya's footsteps were heavy as he made his way up the two flights of stairs, and not for lack of exercise.

As if in complete opposition, Miyuki was almost floating down the hallway. It was not difficult to understand the reason for her happiness. Having been from the Yotsuba in the first place, it had almost been a given that the pair of siblings would arouse a certain sense of rejection amongst their peers. However, not only had her brother attained friends who, for the most part, did not care to judge him based on his family, he had also been recognized what could be called some of the greatest young magical talent in the country.

Their final steps seemed to echo down the hallway as they came to a halt in front of a pair of double doors. Tatsuya raised his hand to give 2 light knocks.

"It's Yotsuba Tatsuya and Yotsuba Miyuki."

"Ah, come in!" An overly cheerful voice invited them in from the other side of the door, one that Tatsuya groundlessly assumed signaled the end of peace and quiet.

Sighing to himself, Tatsuya held open the door for his sister before entering himself. They were greeted with the sight of the student council members sitting down at a large wooden table (the word "desk" did not do it justice) with Mayumi at it's head.

"I am Yotsuba Miyuki, I am pleased to make your acquaintance." Tilting her upper body forward in a bow, Miyuki's poise was unmistakably that of one who had long since grown used to the life of social pandering.

That said, the grace and manners exhibited by their kouhai had temporarily stunned the Student Council into silence.

"I am Yotsuba Tatsuya, I am pleased to make your acquaintance." Though the words used were exactly the same, Tatsuya's introduction could not be placed in the same tier as Miyuki's.

It also served it's purpose of breaking the previously awkward silence.

"A-Ah, Tatsuya-kun and Miyuki-san, please sit down." Mayumi motioned to the seats to her immediate right; the ones on the left were already occupied by Mari and two other young women.

Seeing no reason not to, Tatsuya pulled out the chair for his sister before taking a seat himself. The seating arrangement was now as follows: Miyuki, Tatsuya, Mayumi, Mari, and the two girls in addition to a young man.

Recovering quickly, as expected of one of her social station, Mayumi brought their attention to the two young women to Mari's right.

"Allow me to introduce my friends." She motioned to the three individuals who had yet to be identified.

"This is our Accountant, Ichihara Suzune, also known as Rin-chan!"

"The President is the only one who calls me that." Though Suzune had said that, it did not seem as if she was particularly adverse to the name.

With her long and willowy limbs, as well as her general features giving off a stern impression, it had to be said that "Rin-chan" better fit her profile as a cool beauty.

Moving on, Mayumi next motioned towards the shortest of the group currently gathered at the table.

"This is the Secretary for the Student Council, Nakajou Azusa, also called A-chan!"

"President… please don't call me A-chan in front of the new students! I also have my own position to think about you know!" With her child-like features and teary eyes, Tatsuya had to admit that "A-chan" definitely suited this upperclassman's profile.

"And finally, this is our Vice-President-"

"Hattori Gyoubushoujo Hanzou." Before Mayumi was able to finish, Mari had cut across with a smirk on her face.

The young man now identified as Hattori let something of a spasm ripple across his face before giving up the attempt to hold in his reaction.

"It's Hattori Gyobu!" His cheeks were red, whether from anger or embarrassment was left up to the interpreter. "I've told you many times not to call me that."

"But isn't that your family's title..?" It seemed that Hanzou was in fact, Hattori's given name.

"The school has already accepted Hattori Gyoubu… no, that's not what I meant to say. Rather, simply address me as Hattori Gyoubu."

"That's simply because you're too formal isn't it?"

"Watanabe-senpai, that isn't the point.

"Hanzou-kun?" Mayumi interjected with her head tilted in a "eh?" manner.

Though one would have expected Hattori to lash out, it seemed as if he was unwilling to do so. This was beyond simply being unaccustomed to speaking with the president. Even when he was speaking with Mari, Hattori had maintained his unreserved speech.

Hattori's face as he hesitated in speaking to Mayumi, Tatsuya personally found this to be particularly intriguing. Of course, this was only as long as he remained an observer.

Alas, the time to remain an observer was woefully short.

"President, perhaps it's time to tell us the reason that you brought these two here." This calm observation by Suzune seemed to cut across the quickly degenerating situation.

Mayumi, who had been about to continue her teasing of Hattori, quickly came back to the matter at hand. "That's right, well first I'll start by explaining." She turned to to the siblings, a now serious look on her face.

"Miyuki-san, as you know you are the freshmen representative for this year, in other words, the student with the highest overall entrance exam grades." Miyuki nodded, though the glance she flashed towards her brother was not missed by the others.

"It has long been a tradition for the freshman representative to join the student council. And so, Yotsuba Miyuki-san, will you join the student council?"

Though Mayumi's statement was said in a polite tone, it was definitively different from the cheerful tone she had used to speak to Tatsuya the other day.

At this point, it was clear to everybody in the room that Miyuki was nearly bursting with the need to say something, what this was however, they didn't find out for now.

"I would gladly accept the post Saegusa-senpai." With only a hint of hesitation, Miyuki assented to becoming a member of the Student Council.

It was clear that Mayumi hadn't expected the convincing of Miyuki to be so simple by the surprised look on her face, nevertheless she gave a very unconvincing smile and thanked Miyuki for joining. What was left was a very awkward atmosphere where it seemed as if nobody knew what to do next.

"Mayumi."

"President."

In a way it was hardly surprising that Suzune and Tatsuya were the ones to break this silence; they were both the most pragmatic people in the group by far.

"Please speak first, Ichihara-senpai." Though the circumstances and lack of apology would make it seem sarcastic, Tatsuya's tone implied that he was fully serious.

Looking at him for a brief moment, Suzune decided that it would be best to simply continue with her statement, lest the atmosphere become even more stagnant.

"President, I believe it would be appropriate for us to start lunch. It would be rather silly to invite these two freshmen to lunch and then forgo the process altogether."

Mayumi seemed relieved that someone had given her a way to escape the situation. "Yes of course! Miyuki-san, Tatsuya-kun, would you prefer meat, fish, or vegetarian?"

"The Student Council room has a dinner server module?" Tatsuya didn't answer the question, but instead posed one of his own.

"It's for council members who stay a bit late into the evening to work." Mayumi at least had the decency to look a bit sheepish at this declaration. At this declaration, Hattori stood up from the table.

"President, excuse me for leaving at such a time but I will be taking lunch with the Club Management Group as usual."

"Ah, of course Hanzou-kun." Seeing the others accept this action without a second thought, both of the Yotsuba siblings accepted it as routine.

"Yotsuba-san, it was nice to meet you." Though he had an amicable smile on his face, it was clear that Hattori was only addressing one Yotsuba: Miyuki.

Before she could say anything however, Hattori had already left the room, presumably on his way to the Club Management room.

"Um… Miyuki-san, what kind of lunch would you like?" Mayumi seemed to be borderline panicking at the chilly air that had suddenly descended in the room.

"Actually President, my sister and I brought our own lunches." Tatsuya spoke as if nothing was happening. "Miyuki?"

As if someone had splashed cold water on her, Miyuki did a little jump in her seat before reacting.

"Ah! Y-Yes Onii-sama." One could've argued that it was rather strange for a sister to be carrying both of their lunches; before anything could be said however, Miyuki handed a bento box wrapped in a dark-blue cloth to her brother, keeping one wrapped in white for herself.

Mayumi had already retrieved her lunch along with Suzune's and Azusa's from the dinner server, looking rather put out as Mari also brought out a homemade bento.

"As expected of Miyuki, it looks amazing." Tatsuya praised his sister without reserve as he opened up the bento box. Inside was an assortment of rice, black beans, fried shrimp, eggs, and stir-fried vegetables.

"Thank you Onii-sama." Simple her brother's happy expression was reward enough for Miyuki. Unfortunately(?), it was not only the two of them in the room.

"Hmmm, rather than brother and sister, you seem more like lovers." Meant as a joke, Suzune dropped the proverbial bomb on the two.

"Is that so? If we were not siblings than I would enjoy having her as a lover." His tone as even as ever, Tatsuya detonated the bomb by igniting dynamite over it.

The reaction was almost immediate as everyone besides Tatsuya had the decency to at least look embarrassed.

"That was a joke of course." Tatsuya quickly absorbed the impact of his actions, resulting in the restoration of peace. Fortunately, Miyuki had already managed recompose herself, preventing the near fluorescent blush that would have lit up her face.

Of course his series of actions had some purpose. The previous chilling air had disappeared, replaced by a comfortable, if slightly embarrassed atmosphere.

"Then President, who is the friend that you wanted to introduce me to?" Mayumi, who had previously been staring into her lunch, suddenly popped her head up at Tatsuya's call.

"Eh? That is…" She seemed to stumble a bit after being surprised, her glance toward Suzune however, was not missed by Tatsuya or the receiver.

"Mayumi, what is this about?" Tatsuya noted that the two were close enough for Suzune to call her "Mayumi."

"Rin-chan… do you remember when you told me about your plans for the future?" She seemed rather nervous.

"I do, and what does our new freshman have to do with it?" From the beginning of this meeting, Suzune had been wondering why Tatsuya had accompanied Miyuki. At first she hadn't said anything because it was fairly normal for a brother to accompany his sister; at this point however, she doubted that was the reason.

"Well, Tatsuya-kun has the same plan."

Rather than what Mayumi had hoped would happen between the two, it seemed as if they were analyzing one another more closely than ever. Her reluctance to bring up the subject herself had only made it more difficult for the two to relate.

"So Ichihara-senpai shares Onii-sama's dream? Then the two of you should cooperate!" Miyuki hopped into the conversation, bringing the rapid degeneration of the conversation to halt. The two siblings worked like a well-oiled machine, supporting one another when necessary.

Both stared at her for a moment before having mirrored wry smiles on their faces. "Then Yotsuba Tatsuya, I'm pleased to make your acquaintance." Suzune held her hand out to shake.

Sometimes Tatsuya was truly amazed by the persuasive power his sister possessed. Nevertheless, he held his hand out to shake. "Likewise, I hope we get along Ichihara Suzune."

The lack of honorifics made it clear; they were not speaking on the level of underclassman and upperclassman, but rather, as equals in their field.

"Sustained Gravity-Control type Magic Sequence Thermonuclear Reactor, I was surprised that someone else shared my sort of radical beliefs." Rather than happy, Tatsuya instead seemed rather surprised at his discovery of someone he could relate with.

"You and I both." Suzune could readily agree to that sentiment. Though it wasn't an entirely original idea to raise magicians' social status through economic necessity, only a few had ever truly gone far enough along this path to call it an attempt. In an age where not only federal, but also public opinion of magicians had them seen as little more than weapons, it was difficult to change their image to something else.

A Thermonuclear reactor that required a magician to start it, not to continually reactivate the magic sequence, but to start the magic sequence. If the magician became a component rather than a necessity, it would be little more than what they had now. To make magicians an economic necessity on the level of public health services and agriculturalists, and to be more than simply weapons.

This was the dream shared by Tatsuya and Suzune.

While the two discussed their own thoughts on the subject, a different manner of conversation was brewing with the table's other occupants

"So, aren't the two of them hitting it off a little too well?" Understandably, Mari expressed this to the others around her. Indeed, for a pair that had been at the point of glaring at one another a few minutes prior, Tatsuya and Suzune were currently in their own little world.

That said, it wasn't like the two seemed especially intimate. Instead it seemed to be the type of interest that developed between two people who shared a similar hobby. Engaged in conversation that the others could barely comprehend, the two would be better fitted to a pair of lab coats rather than high school uniforms.

"Well if they share the same interests it shouldn't be too surprising." Mayumi tried to make sense of it, though to tell the truth she was just as surprised. It wouldn't' be an exaggeration to say that Suzune had spoke more in 20 minutes than she had in the past week.

"A-chan, do you understand what they're saying?" Though it was impossible for Mayumi and Mari who weren't nearly as well versed in magic engineering, the former was hoping that their more technically inclined underclassman would be able to explain.

Unfortunately for them, even Azusa could only shake her head. "Not at all…"

It seemed however, that the universe decided for them to continue this conversation at another time. "Onii-sama?" Miyuki tapped her brother on the shoulder. "The time for lunch break is nearly over."

Tatsuya, who had already cleaned up after finishing the lunch his sister had made, acknowledged his sister with a nod before turning back to Suzune.

"Then perhaps we should continue next time." Though Tatsuya had intended to speak first, Suzune had apparently gone ahead spoke in his place.

"Perhaps Tatsuya-kun should just come to the Student Council room from now on. With that, it would be simple for you siblings to stay together." Mayumi made this proposition, thinking that she was being thoughtful.

"Thank you for your offer President, it will be very convenient for us." Though Miyuki accepted without a second thought, Tatsuya felt as if their relationship as sister and brother was somehow being misinterpreted.

"Then Ichihara-senpai, I look forward to our next meeting."

The two shook hands as if sealing a deal.

~~-Line Break-~~

With the lack of proper magic instruction for Course 2 students, the majority of their classes were what could be called "guided learning sessions." They were given an assignment in class and reports to write to turn in. This however, was the extent of their instruction despite numerous mock experiments that had proved the effectiveness of having a teacher to interact with during the learning process.

Today, Class E was assigned to one of the practice rooms, their assignment being to move a flatbed car from one end of a track to the other and back. Needless to say, manual interference was forbidden in this process.

"So Tatsuya, how was the Student Council room?" Leo tapped Tatsuya on the shoulder as the two stood in line waiting to use the CAD that was provided by the school. (The order of the line was: Mizuki, Erika, Tatsuya, Leo.)

"It turned out to be an intriguing conversation, one of it's members were much more well-versed in magic engineering than I would have expected." Tatsuya didn't see any reason to hide his interactions with the Student Council from his new friends.

"Magic Engineering huh? No wonder you look so smart." Though Leo's response wasn't quite the pinnacle of eloquence, it did say a lot about his first impression's of Tatsuya as a person.

"Then what subject were you talking about?" Mizuki interjected in the conversation as she stepped back into the line behind Leo in order to attempt the exercise again. Tatsuya answered as Erika stepped up for her attempt.

"We were discussing making magicians an economic necessity in order to raise their social status." Though this message was shallow on the surface, there were various levels of depth inside of it depending on how far you chose to read.

Tatsuya had elected to not use the term "Gravity Control-type Magic Sequence Thermonuclear Reactor," as it was more than likely that this would do little more than needlessly attract attention from anyone who overheard him.

The second layer of finesse in his statement was only decipherable by a select few; he had chosen to use "their" instead of "our."

"..."

"Mizuki? What's going on?" After finishing her turn, Erika had gone to the back of the line only to find Mizuki with her head tilted downwards, her hair covering her eyes.

It took Mizuki a few moments to respond, unfortunately that coincided with the time that Tatsuya had chosen to form his Activation Sequence.

"Tatsuya-san, my eyes have been opened!" Shocked by the normally quiet and docile Mizuki's outburst, Tatsuya lost his concentration halfway through constructing his magic, leaving the flatbed car now stuck on the other end of the track.

"I, who only entered this school to control these eyes, have been inspired by your noble goal!" At this point, Mizuki had attracted the attention of the groups closest to theirs.

"Mizuki… what are you talking about?" Erika set a hand on her friend's shoulder while sighing heavily.

As if noticing her volume for the first time, Mizuki quickly looked around and proceeded to duck down faster than most moles were able to, her face a beet red color.

Leaving his friends to comfort Mizuki, Tatsuya finished up with his turn. Even with the interruption, the score that Tatsuya ended up with was more than enough to remind him of his disappointing performance.

Even in his class, he would no doubt be considered bottom of the barrel in terms of activation speed.

~~-Line Break-~~

Tatsuya once again found himself in the Student Council room accompanied by his sister during lunch hour. He could not however, deny that this arrangement was much more productive than he had originally anticipated. While Miyuki busied herself learning the ins and outs of being in the Student Council, Tatsuya did not find it difficult to keep himself occupied.

"Ichihara-senpai, it would be more efficient to simply remove this sequence altogether and instead insert a loop sequence over it." Examining the activation sequence that Suzune had inserted as an example in a paper, Tatsuya made his suggestion as if it was fact.

"Hmm, I'll look it over later, just leave an annotation." This work was of course, not of the school variety; Suzune had no trouble with school assignments and certainly did not require assistance.

This work was instead dedicated towards the shared goal of Tatsuya and Suzune.

"Hey Yotsuba." A week ago Tatsuya would not have believed it to be possible for someone to say the name of the most feared of the 10 Master Clans with such a nonchalant tone. He had quickly learned however, that Watanabe Mari had no such qualms.

That said, there were 2 Yotsuba's in the room. The direction Mari was facing however, left no doubts as to which one she was speaking to.

"What is it Watanabe-senpai?" Tatsuya looked up from the papers with his ice-blue eyes, a feature that had served as a surprisingly effective deterrent of people wishing to speak to him.

Of course Mari held no such reservations. "You know everyone's whispering about you right? Though they're rumors, other students have been complaining about you receiving preferential treatment from the Student Council."

Though it seemed like an accusation, Mari's current position made it rather difficult to see it as one. Pressed to the back of one of the many chairs in the room, Mari's neck was currently bent over the top of the backrest, her head giving her an upside-down view of Tatsuya.

"Is that so?" Tatsuya responded in an equally uninterested tone. He did not ask the normal follow-up question of: "_Why do they say that?"_

He did not consider that of any importance, much less something he should lose sleep over.

"Well at least do something that's related to the Student Council. People are starting to grumble about it, and it'll be trouble soon."

Though this seemed like a selfish remark at first, Tatsuya was not ignorant enough to think of it as one. Grumbling students meant unhappy students, this ended up with the student body not supporting the Student Council. If the issue became large enough, and someone did begin openly complaining about blatant favoritism, the school itself would become involved.

Not only would this become a massive inconvenience for those involved, it would also end up hindering the activities of the Student Council. Considering that the Student Council kept track of everything from student records to scheduling campus events, this would no doubt be a headache for no few amount of people.

"However, Tatsuya-kun can't join the Student Council…" Mayumi repeated the fact with a disappointed look on her face. They had already been over this when Miyuki had brought up the hope that Tatsuya could also be a part of the Student Council. The rule that specified that only Course 1 Students could become a part of the Student Council had quickly shut that idea down.

"Then why doesn't he become a member of the Public Morals Committee?" Though she spoke in monotone, the mischievous smile on Mari's face made it clear that she had been planning this from the start.

"I don't think that's-"

"Nice, Mari!" Mayumi, who had previously been down with herself, seemed to have had an injection of enthusiasm at this new possibility.

"The Student Council approves the Public Morals Committee Chairman's recommendation for a new member." Without even waiting for the concerned party to make a statement, Mayumi happily made this declaration.

"Hold on just a moment." Though he was fighting an uphill battle, Tatsuya still felt he needed to make some sort of attempt.

"Before we even start this conversation, I must know the responsibilities of the Public Morals Committee."

Seeing as how Mari and Mayumi would no doubt give him a biased answer or, more than likely, tell him to not worry about it, Tatsuya turned to the next person in the room who wasn't busy.

"Nakajou-senpai." Though he was not intentionally doing so, Tatsuya's natural lack of accommodation to other's comfort zones, along with Azusa's natural disposition, left the latter shrinking into her chair.

"..." While nobody else spoke, Tatsuya's gaze did not move. Eventually, her weakness to pressure ahd Azusa answering.

"T-The Public Morals Committee is tasked with apprehending students who break the rules of the school."

To her relief, Tatsuya immediately turned back to Mari. "And does this not equate to using force if the offenders refuse to cooperate?"

"And, your point is?" The Chief seemed unperturbed at her newest subordinate's(?) concerns.

"My point being that with my poor technical skills, I would be unable to do so."

"It's fine if you leave the physical confrontation to me."

"Watanabe-senpai, I must disagree." Unexpectedly, the one who said this was not Tatsuya, but Hattori. Having been in the room at the time to complete some work on one of the terminals, nobody had expected him to become a part of the argument.

Mari eyed him half with interest, half with apprehension. "And what is your reasoning Vice-President?"

"As a Weed" The apprehension in Mari's gaze suddenly tripled. "It may be possible for him to observe and record crimes on his own. As you no doubt understand however, it is impossible for you to accompany him everywhere; both because it is inefficient and because of your reputation as the Chief of the Public Morals Committee."

As mentioned, the Course 1 students were more talented in their technical skill and given first-rate instruction. The flower-petal marking on their school uniform merely exacerbated the notion of calling themselves "Blooms." In direct opposition were the Course 2 students, known as "Weeds."

Of course the school had officially banned the term, however, the negative stigma was already ingrained within the student body that they were two separate groups, rather than the same "students." The result was a group who was continually full of themselves and swam in superiority, leaving the other half walling in their inferiority complex.

"Vice-President Hattori, you have some nerve uttering that word banned by the school in front of me."

"Even if you say that, there is no denying the reality that students still use this term. Or do you plan on arresting a third of the student body?" Hattori was not arrogant or condescending in his speech, he was merely stating the facts. Thus, Mari could not refute his argument.

"That may be the case." She could however, input her own. "However, there has never been a case of a Course 2 student policing Course 1 students. It has always been the other way around. During my term as Public Morals Committee Chief, I have done my utmost in order to dispel this notion of superiority amongst its members. By doing this, I plan on shattering that worthless idea completely."

Mari fiercely spoke out against the segregation she had long since known of. Even so…

"Still, it is unfeasible for you to follow this student around. In a combat situation where he must subdue fellow students in order to arrest them, the fact remains that he is unable to do so." There was little Mari could do to refute this.

"President, as Vice-President I must, in everyone's interest, object to Yotsuba Tatsuya's appointment as a member of the Public Morals Committee."

"Please wait." Though she did not speak especially loudly, nobody could pretend that they did not hear Miyuki's request.

"Miyuki." Though Tatsuya attempted to stop her, it was already too late. He had noticed his sister slowly becoming more aggravated as the conversation went on. Unfortunately, he had missed his chance to stop her.

"Though it is true that my brother's technical scores are not as high as other's, this is merely because the test was ill-suited to testing his true abilities! Even if this should be considered arrogance, in a real battle my brother would not lose to anyone." This explosive declaration made with eyes filled with certainty had everyone glancing over at Tatsuya to see his reaction.

There was none.

Hattori was not so weak in his resolve as to concede simply because of a statement opposing his own.

"Yotsuba-san, please remember that a magician must keep a calm head at all times. For a normal individual, personal bias may be unavoidable. For one attempting to become a magician however, it must be known that you must be careful in your judgements."

There was no false pretenses of kindness in his rebuff, self-righteous as he was, Hattori truly believed that he was correct in this assessment of the situation.

"Pardon me, but if Onii-sama was simply able to use more of his power-"

Tatsuya finally stood up, putting an arm in front of Miyuki to halt her words. She instantly drew back, both hands over her mouth. It was clear that she had realized that she had said too much.

Looking at Hattori in the same manner that he would adopt with any stranger, Tatsuya once again demonstrated his ability to make explosive situations even more shocking.

"Vice-President Hattori, would you take me on in a mock battle?"

There was no instant reaction or explosion of activity. Instead, there was only silence as everybody stared at him in shock; the calm before the storm.

"D-Don't get ahead of yourself!" Finally Hattori broke the silence. "For me to fight against a mere reserve is ridiculous!"

Tatsuya's chuckle seemed to be the signal that had everybody come back to their senses. "Didn't you say it Hattori-senpai? That Magicians must keep a calm head at all times?"

An angry blush came over Hattori's face at his own words being thrown back at him.

After a moment, Tatsuya continued with his own agenda. "It's not like I want to be a member of the Public Morals Committee. If it is to prove that my sister's judgement is not clouded however, that is an entirely different matter. As it is, we are unable to attest to our anti-personnel combat skills without displaying them in live combat."

The subtle insinuation that Tatsuya held absolute confidence in his ability to defeat Hattori was enough, ironically, to set the latter off.

"Fine, I will show you the difference between you and I."

His calm tone, rather than display a calm countenance, only served to showcase the depth of Hattori's agitation.

Without delay, the two who had the authority to do so quickly interjected.

"The Student Council formally recognizes the practice match between Yotsuba Tatsuya of Class 1-E and Hattori Hanzou of Class 2-A."

"As Public Morals Committee Chief, I approve of the mock battle between these two students as a legitimate extracurricular activity."

"The match will take place 30 minutes from now in the third practice room. The match will be private, CAD's are allowed."

Though Mayumi approved the match, this was only to prevent it from becoming a brawling incident. In all actuality she was exceedingly apprehensive about the confrontation for a single reason.

Hattori would be facing off against Yotsuba Tatsuya.

Yotsuba.

~~-End-~~

A/N

This update came out slightly slower than intended for various reasons, mainly because of 2 exams popping up in the middle of its composition.

Some things you might notice about this series is that it places less of an emphasis on Tatsuya and Miyuki. This is simply because I do not intend for this story to be a retelling of the original; make no mistake, there will be definitive changes in the story.

That said, I fully intend on keeping the main focus the same as the original Light Novel.

Thank you to all who read and reviewed the first chapter~~


	3. Chapter 3: Course 2 Magicians

Chapter 3: Course 2 Magicians

The halls echoed as with the footsteps of the Yotsuba siblings as they progressed towards the Third Practice Room. A black attaché in his hands, Tatsuya's stoic expression was markedly different than his sister's.

'_Only the 3rd day in and my cat's already going to be out of the bag…'_ Though he was no fan of cliche, even Tatsuya could not deny that this phrase fit perfectly into the situation.

"Onii-sama… I am very sorry." For a moment, Tatsuya wondered if he had spoken aloud as Miyuki voiced her apology.

"If it had not been for me, Onii-sama's secret would still be…" Miyuki's self-deprecation came to an end as Tatsuya turned to face her.

"That's enough Miyuki." Though he began with a rebuke, his true intention was to soothe his sister's anxiety's. "I've said it since we were children remember? I am always saved by you getting angry in my place since I am unable to anger for myself."

Wiping away the small tears gathering at the corner of Miyuki's eyes, Tatsuya then moved to stroke her head, something of a reflex at this point.

"Now then, instead of that, there is a more fitting phrase for this moment."

Shaking away the last of her doubts, Miyuki timidly looked up and responded in kind. "Yes… Do your best."

In a similar fashion, Tatsuya gave her a small smile and continued towards the Third Practice Room.

~~-Line Break-~~

Nobody greeted Tatsuya as the door to the Third Practice Room opened, something not altogether surprising considering his heritage. Nevertheless, the sight of all of someone's upperclassmen standing across the room from them would undoubtedly give the impression that a side was already being favored.

Of course, Mari was once again the one to break the ice. "I'm surprised that you proposed a match to settle things."

"I do not know what would give you that idea."

"You seemed like the intellectual type who would not be bothered by the insults of others. As a result, I'm surprised at your enthusiasm at fighting." As blunt as ever, Mari did not hesitate in giving her first impression of him.

And yet, despite saying this, her eyes were clearly brimming with anticipation. Besides confirming what he had already known about Mari seeing this as little more than a bonus, it also told Tatsuya something very important.

Watanabe Mari was confident.

Not the damning arrogance of someone who overestimated themselves.

This was the confidence of a person who had absolute faith in their own abilities. It was the confidence born of the hard work of an already talented magician. Mari was confident that, despite what might happen. she would be fully capable of halting the match at any time.

With his steel-like self-restraint, Tatsuya refrained from sighing in the face of such confidence. This knowledge only served to remind him that he would be working under such a person when he was finished with this match.

"I thought it was the job of the Public Morals Committee to prevent personal fights." Though Tatsuya already found this to be a losing battle, he reasoned that he had to at least make an attempt.

"This isn't a personal fight, it's a legitimate extracurricular activity, and official match so to speak." She quickly rebutted hit argument without much trouble.

"You see, the line of "strength" between Course 1 and Course 2 has never been something official, merely something that the students impose upon themselves. And so it's interesting you see?"

"I can't say I follow you."

"This is the first time we've had a matter between a Course 1 and Course 2 student settled this way."

'_Rather than avoiding direct conflict, it seems as if contests of strength are actually encouraged here if things cannot be settled with words alone...'_

Despairing slightly over this fact while thinking of two of his new friends, Tatsuya could only resign himself to fate.

"Could it be that the number of 'formal matches' has actually increased since you became the Chairman of the Public Morals Committee, senpai?"

"Indeed, it has increased by a large margin." Rather than having the decency to appear sheepish, Mari actually seemed proud of this fact.

'_Probably the type that would go against the grain simply to bring about conflict...'_

In other words, Watanabe Mari was a troublemaker for no other reason than because she liked being one.

Lamenting the remarkable ups and downs in his human relationships over the past few days, Tatsuya set the case he was carrying on the floor before opening it up. Everyone watched with interest save for Miyuki.

Within the case was 2 silver handguns of which Tatsuya took one, removing a cartridge from where the magazine would normally be and exchanging it for another inside the case.

"Do you always carry storage cartridges with you?" Mari seemed interested by the unusual method of utilizing a CAD.

CAD were separated into 2 types, Generalized and Specialized. In contrast to a Generalized CAD which could store up to 99 types of Magic Sequences, the Specialized CAD Tatsuya was wielding was commonly used to store only a single type of Magic Sequence. And so the practice of utilizing multiple storage cartridges was founded to remedy this weakness. Specialized CAD were however, as indicated by their name, commonly utilized by magicians who were strong with _only _one type of magic.

In this sense Tatsuya, who utilized a Specialized CAD and yet carried multiple storage cartridges, could be considered an abnormality.

"Yes, I am unable to smoothly operate a Generalized CAD as I cannot cope with them."

This statement elicited a sneer from Hattori who stood across the room. This however, did not impact Tatsuya's mindset in the slightest.

"Hmph, than as the judge allow me to explain the rules." Unexpectedly, Mayumi, not Mari, was the one who said this. If one thought more deeply however, it made complete sense that the daughter of the Saegusa Clan would want to keep an eye on the progeny of the Yotsuba Clan.

"In terms of direct or magical attacks, lethal attack are forbidden." The two involved parties began to walk to face one another.

"Likewise, attacks that can cause permanent disabilities to the opponent are also forbidden. Direct attacks that cause direct harm to the physical body are also forbidden. Techniques that do not result in anything more than a bone fracture however, are allowed."

While the rest of the Student Council, along with Mari and Miyuki, stepped back to watch, one could not help but notice the sudden calm that had come over the two combatants.

"No weapons are allowed at any time. Any violation of the rules will be stopped by the full force of the judge with victory being awarded to the opponent."

While seconds before the atmosphere between the two had been rather antagonistic, it was now a simple confrontation.

"The condition for defeat is when the judge determines one side is unable to continue the battle. Both sides please move to your respective starting lines and do not activate your CAD until I give the signal. That is all."

As Hattori and Tatsuya stood 5 meters away from one another, the former was already forming the image of his victory. Neither prideful nor arrogant, this was the natural conclusion that most people would make.

The distance between the two was not something that could be covered in the interval it took to activate magic, not even by a professional soccer player. This was a given seeing as this was a contest of magical might and not a fist fight.

Following this logic, the one to activate their magic first would be the winner. Though one strike may not be enough to guarantee victory, some degree of damage would be unavoidable. There were very few in the world who were able to sustain magical damage and continue to calmly work their own magic. Obviously this level of discipline would not be expected in a high-school student. Given this, as long as they continued to attack, the one to activate their magic first would be the winner.

In addition, under the condition that both sides activated their CAD at the same time, Hattori had no doubt that he would be faster. In terms of processing speed, the defining difference between Course 1 and Course 2 students, Hattori was near the top of his 2nd year class, if not the best outright.

In contrast, Tatsuya was not only a 1st year, he was also near the bottom of Course 2 in terms of processing speed. Given this advantage, even the speed advantage of a specialized CAD could not bridge the gap. Given these undeniable facts, Hattori's assumption that he could not lose was by no means without logic.

Nevertheless, Tatsuya continued to stand in place with his Specialized CAD pointed towards the ground, the neutral look on his face never faltering.

Just as silence was about to reign over the room, Mayumi's signal came.

"Begin!"

The official match between Hattori and Tatsuya officially began.

Tapping 3 keys on the CAD located on his wrist, Hattori had already made the necessary calculations to place the target directly under his opponent. The simplistic activation sequence that was meant for speed was already complete, it's caster already in the magic invocation stage.

And yet… his adversary, that insufferable first year student, was inexplicably close enough to fill his entire vision. Almost letting out a cry of surprise, Hattori hastily changed the target location and prepared to unleash his magic.

The Basic Single Sequence Movement-type magic would throw any opponent twelve meters backwards, rendering them unconscious upon impact and ending the battle.

But, the magic ended without ever being cast.

Tatsuya, who had been in front of Hattori the entire time, had suddenly disappeared. Suddenly losing visual confirmation of the target, failure of casting was inevitable.

Even given the Psion Information that should have given away Tatsuya's location immediately, a person that would be able to take advantage of this information after suffering such a shock would be nothing less than seasoned in live combat.

In the few moments that Hattori was looking left and right for his opponent, a wave motion, nay, 3 consecutive waves of Psions approached him from the side and coalesced as they impacted his body. The result was a massive sense of "swaying" and the loss of balance.

As Hattori tumbled to the floor in front of Tatsuya's CAD, the former's consciousness plunged just as quickly.

In the face of this match that had lasted a mere 5 seconds, it was not a hyperbole to call it an "instant win."

"W-Winner, Yotsuba Tatsuya." In a sense, it could be considered admirable that Mayumi had the composure to fulfill her duty as a judge before checking on her vice-president. That said, it may have been because Mari was already there and not panicking.

Giving a small bow, Tatsuya progressed towards the case he had left on the ground, looking to return his CAD to its place.

It wasn't simply his posture or expression, he was entirely uninterested with this victory. There was no trace of joy on his face, simply the bored expression of one who had arrived at the expected result.

In direct contrast, everybody besides Miyuki, who had already foreseen this result, was staring at Tatsuya in shock.

"Wait, Tatsuya-kun. What did you do?" It wasn't very eloquent, but nobody could blame Mayumi when they weren't able to fully express their own thoughts either. The movement he had exhibited in the brief moments of the match would have anyone doubting their eyes.

"That speed just now, did you input a Speed-type activation sequence prior to the match starting?" Mari, having snapped out of her amazed stupor, began to analyze the match in detail. Despite this, her comments told everyone that she wasn't completely in a calm mindset yet.

Even if Tatsuya had input a Speed-type activation sequence before the match started, there was no way that people as talented as Mari, Mayumi, and Hattori would have missed the output of Psions that accompanied the use of such magic.

Thinking as much, Tatsuya made his response. "Watanabe-senpai, I think you know as well as I do that that would have been impossible without you noticing."

"Then what was that?" Mari knew, probably better than anybody as an anti-personnel combat magician, that there had been no magic involved with Tatsuya's movement. Her common sense however, told her that the speed he had been moving at was simply not within human-boundaries.

"It was a legitimate physical technique." Though his answer caused others to doubt themselves, Miyuki once again came to Tatsuya's aid.

"It is true, Onii-sama is tutored by Kokonoe Yakumo-sensei."

Mari could only stare in slight amazement at the pair. To someone as well-versed in combat as herself, the name Kokonoe Yakumo was easily recognizable; both because of his skill, and because of the fact that he was considered and eccentric recluse, something the man had no trouble admitting.

For Mayumi, Suzune, and Azusa, the shock was not the name, but rather that something that had been written off as possible only through magic was suddenly established as a physical technique.

Having recovered from her shock, Mayumi posed her own question. "Then what about that attack? That wasn't ninjutsu, I saw the release of Psion waves during the process."

Though asking about a magician's magic or abilities was considered rude and against the rules, Mayumi's curiosity as a magician who manipulated Psions into projectiles could not be held back.

"You would be correct, the attack I utilized was a Oscillation-type Basic Single System Magic."

Movement/Oscillation

Speed/Weight

Absorb/Release

Converge/Disperse

These were the 4 types of Systemic Modern Magic. Though it was not so convenient as to say being able to use these 4 systems would allow one to utilize all known magic, these 4 systems were basis on which most magic was based. This type of magic aimed to manipulate physical phenomena in the real world.

Magic that worked to manipulate the Psions directly and not physical phenomena, fell under the category of Non-Systemic Magic. An example of this would be the Psion Bullet that Mayumi had used to disperse the commotion between the Course 1 and Course 2 students on the first day of class.

The magic that Tatsuya had used was Oscillation-type magic used to produce Psion wave motions. And yet, these wave motions alone were not enough to knock out magicians who could perceive Psions as they did sound waves.

"Compound Waves." Suzune spoke out to answer the question in everyone's mind: For someone like Hattori who was a capable magician, it should not be possible for Psion waves alone to knock him out.

Knowing that more explanation would be needed, Suzune continued. "Yotsuba-san fired three Psion waves simultaneously. The combination of these 3 waves convened upon impact led to a surge in Psion activity that incapacitated Vice-President Hattori."

A brilliant observation for having only seen the magic in question once. It was often said that Suzune's magical talent rivaled that of Mayumi and Mari, at the very least, she had proved that she was not inferior at all.

"Still…" Eyes once again turned to her as Suzune began speaking once more. "That does not explain how you were able to cast 3 instances of that magic in such quick succession given that you are a Course 2 Student." Despite it normally being used in a derogatory manner, Suzune was implying what was naturally true, and what Tatsuya had already admitted to: His technical prowess was far below that of what was required to accomplish the feat he had.

At this point, it was up to another to explain the situation.

"Um.. excuse me, but is Yotsuba-san using the Silver Horn?" Azusa, who had previously been hiding behind Mari and Mayumi, had suddenly closed into within 2 feet of Tatsuya. Showing none of the meekness she had before, the girl was staring with a feverish look in her eyes at the handgun-shaped CAD held in Tatsuya's hands.

"That would be correct." Though he doubted there was any actual risk in Azusa physically harming him, the look that she was giving Tatsuya was enough to make anyone uncomfortable.

"I knew it! The CAD designed by the famous Magic Engineer associated with Four Leaves Technology, Taurus Silver, who's real name, face, and Personal Data all remain a secret!"

Azusa's eyes were practically glowing as she spoke the glorious(?) name of her idol.

"The engineer who brought the Loop Cast system into the mainstream market! Even though the idea was there before, he was the one who finally realized the code needed to make the system function. By copying the previous Activation Sequence-"

"Enough! I know what the Loop Cast system is." Mari, who could no longer bear to hear her childlike underclassmen gush, interrupted her .

"More importantly, the Loop Cast system only duplicates the previous Activation Sequence. In order to have these waves compound at Vice-President Hattori's location, you would have had to calculate acceleration, direction, wavelength, and number of vibrations as separate variables…"

Tatsuya answered with a wry smile on his face. "The only thing that the entrance exam tests for is invocation speed, scale of magc sequence, and phenomena rewriting ability after all. Be it decision making, multi-variable calculation speed, calculation scale, or interference strength, none of these are given a score in the exam."

The surprise in the eyes of the upperclassmen could not be hidden as they realized the highly technical nature of the magic they had just witnessed; and also why Miyuki had judged the entrance exam as being unsuitable to judge her brother's abilities.

"I see… so the exam is not suited to fully evaluating a person's complete abilities."

"Hanzou-kun, are you alright?"

Faced with a rapidly approaching Mayumi, Hattori quickly got up from where he had been laying on the ground. Though he was not openly blushing, the flustered look on his face made it crystal clear to Tatsuya, and undoubtedly to Mayumi, that Hattori did not hope for a merely platonic relationship with the latter.

"I'm completely fine! Though I was in a hazy state after regaining consciousness, I only regained movement now."

In other words, he had heard their entire conversation.

Nevertheless, Tatsuya held no interest in watching Mayumi torment her underclassmen and continued putting away his CAD. Meanwhile Azusa continued to watch him with eyes that clearly said, "Want it…"

"Anyways, Yotsuba-san…" Having escaped(?) from Mayumi, Hattori seemed to struggle with himself a moment before turning slightly more to his right. This had him facing both siblings, rather than Miyuki alone.

For one who had spoken so freely about his opinion in front of the Ten Master Clans and then be so soundly defeated, Hattori was had been thoroughly embarrassed.

"I apologize… to both of you for making assumptions when I had no true knowledge of the situation." Despite his humiliation, it was a testament to Hattori's morals when he was able to openly admit his wrongdoings and apologize.

This sentiment was not wasted on Miyuki who also gave a short bow before speaking. "No, I was also in the wrong for speaking so freely Vice-President Hattori. I hope to continue to be in your care in the future."

Presented with such a sincere appeal, Hattori could do little more than nod in agreement.

Sometimes Tatsuya was left wondering who the elder and more mature sibling was. Had he been approached alone, he likely would have not given a thought to Hattori's apology. For Miyuki, who would be working with the Student Council from now on, that would have brought nothing more than trouble.

Yes, the way it had just gone was the best way to have finished it.

"Then everyone, lets go back to the Student Council Room!" At Mayumi's cheerful words, the rest could only sigh and follow her lead.

~~-Line Break-~~

As soon as the group arrived back in the Student Council Room, bar Hattori who had gone to the Club Management Room, Mari had Tatsuya by the wrist and was dragging him towards the doors near the windows.

Though Miyuki, who was being tutored by Azusa on the work of the Student Council, raised an eyebrow at this, Tatsuya was already through the door and down the stairs by the time he saw this. As soon as Mari let go of his hand at the bottom of the staircase, Tatsuya could already feel a headache building.

"Chief… have you ever cleaned this place up?"

Mari blinked. "So it's 'Chief,' instead of Watanabe-senpai now is it?" She had a smirk on her face that befitted her personality. It wasn't like there wasn't room to put your foot on the ground, that level of messiness was sure to attract attention if not from Mari, than at least from the Student Council. No, instead it was to the point where the room was still somewhat visible, but finding a spot to sit was rather difficult.

Seeing this, even Tatsuya was hard-pressed to keep his sigh to himself. "While I neither asked for nor wanted this position, I no longer intend to back out at this point." Having gone so far as to fight Hattori, Tatsuya was committed to the Public Morals Committee, something Mari was obviously happy about.

"Well there was something I wanted to ask you anyways. Why try to be a magic engineer when your combat ability is so high? With you family, I doubt there would be many problems with working for them either." Though she sincerely did want to know the answer to those questions. Tatsuya suspected that the latter part was an attempt to get a rise out of him more than anything.

Rather than flare up at the mention of his family, Tatsuya answered with his usual calm monotone. "With my technical abilities, a C-rank License would be my limit."

Mari frowned, though this was the indisputable truth. The licensing exams for combat magicians was set nearly identically to the school entrance exams. This way, the government would be able to effectively track a student's progression should they want to join the JSDF. (Japanese Special Defense Force.)

In terms of licensing, international law had 5 ranks of License that a magician could earn, ranging from E-rank to A-rank. One of Mari or Mayumi's magical prowess, who were no doubt among the best in the world, would easily make an A-rank license. That said, there were many others not as talented who struggled to make even a C-rank license.

"Rather than that, is it alright if I tidy this place up?"

Faced with this sudden request, Mari looked at Tatsuya with a slightly incredulous expression.

"As I said, I am aiming to become a Magic Engineer, more specifically, a Magic Artificier. If that is the case, I simply cannot leave things out like this."

"Ah? Just one moment, I'll help out too." After hearing Tatsuya's reasons, Mari quickly got up and began to help tidy up… Though that may have been a generous evaluation.

Though Tatsuya was efficiently working his way through the various clutter in front of him, the pile in front of Mari did not decrease in size. Having known she was unsuited to this kind of work, Mari could only awkwardly stumble her way through it, lest she rudely leave Tatsuya working through the piles of books and terminals left on the table as she sat there and watched.

Nevertheless, after trying for several minutes to quell the pile in front of her and failing, Mari was forced to admit defeat as Tatsuya began to sort the books that had been left on the table by subject.

"Then Tatsuya-kun." Tatsuya noted the use of his first name. "If you're going to be a part of the Public Morals Committee I may as well explain the reasoning for taking you out of all the possible choices."

Certainly, Tatsuya had wondered why Mari had made the suggestion to him rather than other Course 1 students even knowing he was a Course 2 students. She would have known about the flaws that Hattori had pointed out earlier seeing as how the others had not yet known about his anti-personnel ability.

"To be quite honest, I would have been happy to accompany you around if it meant we would have a Course 2 student making arrests. It was a matter of appearance."

Mari bluntly gave this verdict without a second thought.

"Our goal was to improve the perception of Course 2 students even if it meant lowering the overall efficiency of the Public Morals Committee."

"Our idea?" Though Tatsuya could more or less assume who 'our' included, he felt the need to simply allow Mari to say it.

"Mayumi of course." She sighed heavily and shook her head as if regretting it. "It was naive to think we could do something like that. Despite what our opinion is, it would be impossible to have the opinion of students change if the one making arrests was being accompanied."

This was something that was simply unavoidable. To elevate the Course 2 student's status, it would be necessary for the student to apprehend a suspect on their own. Otherwise an arrest done with a partner would simply be written off as a Course 1 student's accomplishment.

"Nevertheless, we thought that, perhaps new Year 1 students would not have been exposed to the school attitude long enough to become prejudiced. Needless to say, that spectacle we saw the other day was enough to prove us wrong."

"I don't believe that the Chief and President were wrong in trying to change the way Course 2 students are viewed." Tatsuya suddenly cut in the middle of Mari's explanation.

"The problem that goes on with this school, this prejudice against Course 2 students, is the problem with Magicians of the world in miniature."

Magicians were viewed by normal humans as human weapons.

Course 2 students were viewed by Course 1 students as inferior beings.

Mari was intelligent enough to understand this. "Course 2 students aren't like magicians in the real world yet. It isn't possible to make them absolutely necessary to the school in the eyes of those in charge." A dark and bitter glint in her eyes was visible, something that Tatsuya certainly did not enjoy seeing on a young woman's face, no matter how cold he was.

"You're correct." Mari let out a bitter smile as if she had expected this answer. "It is indeed impossible for _you_ to make Course 2 students a necessity. They must do so themselves, just as magicians are trying to."

Mari's previously cold expression changed into one of delighted surprise as she looked up at Tatsuya.

It was true. Even if the Course 1 students were putting down the Course 2 students and placing themselves as superior, it was the latter group that was allowing this to happen. As said before, the line in the ground was drawn by Course 1 students, but it was followed and deepened by the Course 2 students.

"Just as Ichihara-senpai and I are working to improve the social status of magicians, there are no doubt Course 2 students who resent their position and are working to improve it."

Mari and Mayumi who were working to assist the Course 2 students who were being oppressed.

Tatsuya and Suzune who dreamt to make magicians more than simple human weapons.

Perhaps he was not irreconcilable simply because he was Yotsuba.

These were Mayumi's honest thoughts as she listened from behind the closed door that separated the Public Morals Committee room from the staircase to the Student Council Room.

~~-End-~~

A bit shorter this time though with good reason. The fight scene was slightly difficult to write, though that wasn't the main thing.

This chapter was meant to bring about character development and flesh out what each character really stands for.

Hattori has his pride but is also a person of admirable character. Tatsuya has his dreams that he won't give up on even if he has no emotions. Mari and Mayumi are best friends who support the other with all they can.

Changes will be coming soon, it's just difficult to do so while trying to lay out groundwork for all the characters and the plot.

Thank you to all who continue to follow and review this story!


	4. Author's Note

**A/N**

Sadly this is not a new chapter to the story, though it is in the works. Instead this is an update to the situation and a response to some PM's that I have been receiving.

First off, a status update. This story is not over but will be put **on hiatus until at mid-December**. The reason for this abrupt pause is because of rapidly approaching semester exams for college students. Because of this, I will not have a sufficient amount of time to write. Even if I did release a chapter, it would not be something that I, or the readership could be satisfied with. I hope that everyone understands this decision.

In response to PM's and some reviews that ask about the lack of deviation in the story; both about the plotline in general and the lack of change in other character's treatment of Miyuki and Tatsuya.

Regarding the first point, this is simply the beginning of the story in which background information must be laid down before I can truly make any meaningful changes. Firmly establishing character relationships and getting down the fundamentals for those who are not as familiar with the series as others. These are things that cannot be avoided.

Now on to the second. Think about how you interact with people. Then think about how the characters portray themselves in the Light Novel, Manga, and Anime. All the people that Miyuki and Tatsuya have been interacting with have shown themselves to be mostly if not completely impartial in their judgement of others. As a result, I reasoned that it was unlikely that their opinions on the pair would change in any significant capacity, so long as the two did not take any hostile actions

**The questions addressed above will not be answered any longer since they have already been clearly addressed here. If anyone would like to shoot me a PM, feel free to do so whenever. I will most likely respond unless you readers have been told otherwise.**

Thank you all for continuing to read. I appreciate the fact that there are people who actually want to read my work and enjoy it as much as I enjoy writing it. Happy Holidays to all of you, and good luck to those who, similarly to myself, be taking exams soon.


	5. Chapter 4: Club Recruitment

Chapter 4: Club Recruitment

"You're really something else you know?" Having listened to Tatsuya's own views, Mari could only let the emotions show on her face. It wasn't admiration, rather, it was a combination of pride and relief. Her judgement hadn't been wrong when she selected Tatsuya to join the Public Morals Committee. A strong belief in his goals; and pragmatic at that.

And yet, Tatsuya felt a strong urge to throw these words back at Mari. The Public Morals Committee Chief who encouraged using martial abilities in order to resolve conflict… he couldn't help but feel that this was a conflict of interest.

Fortunately(?), there was a knock at the door at this time, with two male students coming in. Both were easily identified as members of the Committee if one found the armband that they wore around their left bicep.

"Nee-san, we're coming in!"

As soon as those words came out of the shorter of the pair's mouth, Mari pointedly ignored the questioning gaze that Tatsuya had shot her in reaction.

"Chief, today's patrol has been finished. No arrests were made." The other one, taller, and rather unremarkable, made this statement while staring at Tatsuya out of the corner of his eyes, clearly wondering what he was doing there. His partner however, was doing no such thing, and instead stared in amazement at the room.

"You're telling me nee-san cleaned?" The disbelief in his voice only confirmed what Tatsuya had already assumed from the state of the room: the messy state of affairs was due in large part to Mari dismissing the need for neatness.

"Ah-yah!" The very same shorter student now held his head as Mari stood over him with a notebook, now rolled up into a rod, in her hands.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to call me nee-san Koutarou?" She seemed rather frustrated at this ruining of her previous image. "I swear, if your head wasn't attached to your body, you would lose that too."

"T-That's just mean nee-Chief." Having noticed the fact that Mari had already started pulling back to deliver another blow, Koutarou quickly changed his previous method of address into Mari's official title.

"By the way Chief, who is this newcomer?" Though he did not mean any harm, these words said by Koutarou undoubtedly changed the atmosphere. "There's no insignia…"

"Tatsumi-senpai, that's violating the ban on certain words. In this case, the proper term would be Course 2 Student." Though he said this, the other male, still standing by the door, could not hide his body language that was clearly not yet one of acceptance.

"His name is Yotsuba Tatsuya. And I'm only going to tell you guys once, but he's already thrashed Hattori."

While Tatsuya was not fond of describing his victory with a word as crass as "thrashed," it clearly got the point across to the other two, their expressions changing from analytical, to amazed. It was a moment where it seemed as if one of the two might ask, "Hattori doesn't have any younger siblings does he?"

Luckily, this was not the case. "Hattori, who's been undefeated since he got here was done in by this guy?"

"I believe I just said that Sawaki."

"...That's hard to believe, but if the Chief said it, then it must be true."

Though Tatsuya thought it was rather strange to be stared at for such a long time, he did not show it.

"Then… Yotsuba-kun, it's nice to make your acquaintance." The shorter one, Koutarou, offered his hand to Tatsuya in a somewhat hesitant manner.

"3rd Year Class-C, Tatsumi Koutarou."

Though Tatsuya was slightly disconcerted, he took Koutarou's hand and shook without troubling himself over it too much.

"Surprised?" Mari called out with a smirk on her face.

"Hm?" Though the question was vague, it was still rather obvious what Mari was referring to. Nevertheless, Tatsuya offered this inquiry simply out of reflex.

"While it's true that there are many in the school who mindlessly immerse themselves in the idea that Blooms are superior to Weeds, it should be clear by now that I hate that. Luckily, Juumonji and Mayumi understand my personality and allow me to pick the ones that work under me."

Though one could consider this selfish, it wa also imperative to develop an unbiased judgement system.

"While I can't say that these guys are completely free of that idea, it's at least to the point where we can each judge one another objectively in terms of skill." Mari had a rather pleased look on her face that quickly soured as she spoke again.

"Unfortunately, the three recommended by the staff, of which I have no control over, are typically of the former category. Nevertheless, I don't think that you will find this place to be uncomfortable for you."

Watching the now friendly looks on his senpai's faces, Tatsuya couldn't find it in himself to say otherwise.

"Ah, that's right Chief, if this guy is the one that you brought in, where's the newcomer that was recommended by the staff? Don't tell me he already left." Sawaki made this reasonable inquiry as soon as he had finished his own greeting with Tatsuya who had gone back to sorting some of the equipment on the shelves.

"Ah, him. Morisaki won't be around until tomorrow, I'll count on one of you guys to show him the ropes then?"

As Sawaki was about to agree with a salute, he paused after hearing a light clattering noise; Tatsuya had dropped one of the CAD's that he had been handling from across the room. Nobody was using the old models so it wasn't a big deal, but the impression that he had gotten from his underclassman was that he wouldn't make such mistakes.

"Heh, so even you can be surprised." Ignoring the rather uncomfortable looks of her subordinates, Mari wasted no time in teasing her newest. Seeing him speechless, she simply continued with her attack.

"Though there are grounds for protesting his recommendation by the staff because of yesterday's incident, it would be impossible to do so without bringing you into the picture as well."

Though Tatsuya wanted to make the suggestion that she simply deny both of their entrances into the Public Moral Committee, this seemed rather pointless now that he had gone through so much grief over it.

"Do you dislike it?"

Being asked such a direct question, Tatsuya was left with little choice but to answer. "I don't think that my opinion matters very much on this matter given that I am a new member. I simply think that having him on the committee will prove counterproductive to its objectives."

Though he had more or less figured out her personality by now, Tatsuya was still amazed by how much confidence Mari showed when she replied. "If that's the case than I'll take care of it."

To Tatsuya's dismay, the other two seemed to have grown desensitized to this type of behavior already. Clearly, getting into an argument of this sort with a determined Mari or Mayumi was a guaranteed way to lose.

"Well, if he does do anything unbefitting of his position, Chief, President Saegusa, and Group Leader Juumonji will take care of it."

"If I may ask, who is Juumonji?" Though he knew the name as a part of the Ten Master Clans, Tatsuya had not yet been able to confirm his position within the school.

"Ah, sorry." Mari reseated herself, this time in one of the chairs, before continuing. "Juumonji Katsuto from the Club Management Group, you can just call him Group Leader Juumonji."

Not feeling the need to explain Juumonji's familial relations, Mari simply confirmed his role in school. It seemed as if this year was going to be rather interesting, or so her intuition told her.

~~-Line Break-~~

"Onee-sama."

"Onee-chan!"

Though the two voices came from behind Mayumi, she was already fully aware of who they belonged to.

"What is it Izumi-chan, Kasumi-chan?" Saegusa Izumi and Saegusa Kasumi, also known collectively as the Saegusa Twins, approached Mayumi as the latter was finishing what seemed like work from school.

"How was school today?" Kasumi's seemingly normal question was offset by the fact that the twins normally never bothered asking such mundane things. Nevertheless, Mayumi tried to ignore the foreboding feeling that she felt.

"It was very nice actually." Mayumi thought for a moment before continuing her statement. "How about the two of you?"

"It was fine, Onee-sama."

Now she was suspicious. Kasumi asking about her day, and then Izumi speaking out while her twin was still fully in control?

"You two… what are you hiding from me?" Her eyes narrowed as she leveled a stare at the two sisters that she otherwise adored.

"..."

"...As expected, Onee-sama is too sharp." Izumi was the one to respond to the accusation; more or less admitting their intentions. The two had the decency to look sheepish over being caught. Despite their older sister sometimes being airheaded, it simply wasn't possible to be the eldest daughter of the Saegusa and not be able to tell when people were trying to hide something.

Though she had expected as much, Mayumi wasn't one to get angry over such a petty matter. For all she knew, her sisters had come to her to ask for help.

"Then, what is it that you wanted to know?" Mayumi was very forthright with her question, something she was rarely allowed to do.

"Onee-chan… have you spoken to the new students at your school?" Kasumi looked at her older sister with an apprehensive look on her face.

While this question would be vague in any other situation, Mayumi already knew that Kasumi was referring to the two Yotsuba children who had recently enrolled at First High School. More specifically, if they had caused any trouble.

"Kasumi-chan…" Though Mayumi thought it was too early for her younger sister to become concerned with such things, she clearly thought different.

Shaking her head in a weary manner, Mayumi tried to respond as best she could. "The Yotsuba haven't made any sort of aggressive moves at First High. For all intents and purposes, they've been behaving as normal high school students would."

There was the rather large issue that they had been recruited into two of the three groups that controlled the student body, but that wasn't something the twins needed to know at the moment.

"Onee-chan, just be careful okay?" The phrase was spoken but Kasumi, but the look that Izumi gave her eldest sister left no doubt that the meaning was from both of them. Mayumi was among the best in terms of magical power; of this there was no dispute to be made. The Yotsuba however, were not known as the most powerful for no reason. The fact that they had chosen to send not one, but two of their own to First High only exacerbated this concern.

Sensing that the atmosphere in the room was falling through, the ever sensitive Izumi made her move to change the subject.

"Moving on, Onee-sama, have you considered any of the marriage propositions yet?"

Of course, this didn't mean that she wasn't going to change it into something that would be entertaining for her.

"J-Just a second Izumi-chan! What do you mean by that?" As the eldest daughter of the Saegusa, it was hardly surprising that Mayumi had already gone through a multitude of dates and outings with some prominent businessman's son or the scion of another powerful magic family.

As of now, the most prominent of these suitors was the Itsuwa Hirofumi, the scion of the Itsuwa family. Though the adults in their life (though the two were technically adults by legal standards) saw all the advantages of pairing the two, there was no mutual interest from either side. Thus the two merely maintained an air of civility when together; something that was mistaken by desperate elders as an attraction.

"Nothing much Onee-chan, we were just concerned for you. 18 and still without a boyfriend, yet you're clearly above any of the annoying bugs that buzz around you." Kasumi's blunt, yet in her opinion, honest statement only served to remind Mayumi of her rather sad social position.

It was almost pitiable how Mayumi's social nature and natural grace, which would usually have her surrounded by the typical love confessions of adolescent boys, only served to drive others away when combined with her social position and status as the Student Council President. She immediately became an unreachable goal that others would hesitate to even try for.

Of course, for all her political astuteness, Mayumi was unable to discern this reason.

"Well then, how it's not like you get any of these confessions from boys either!" It was disputable whether or not this was even a relevant argument. Izumi and Kasumi were by no means unattractive; in fact, they could be considered beautiful by many, however…

"That is irrelevant Onee-sama. Kasumi-chan and I are only in middle school."

"That's right Onee-chan. Besides, in terms of love confessions, Izumi received two just the other day."

Perhaps it was the fact that she had been soundly defeated by her sisters that were 4 years her junior, but Mayumi could no longer find it in herself to argue back.

Still, she couldn't help but remember the initial part of their conversation. So far, the two Yotsuba siblings hadn't done anything out of the ordinary realm of high school students. It was clear that the younger sister was much more capable than many of the upperclassmen; this however, simply made the older brother even more of enigma. Given that talents that he had displayed the other day, it was doubtful that he had shown all her was capable of.

Mayumi sighed heavily as these troublesome thoughts were accompanied by the BGM of her sisters' conversation.

~~-Line Break-~~

Though First High School and its associates were part of a magic oriented education system, the basic structure of their classes were not so dissimilar from a normal high school.

Clubs for example, were still considered as extracurricular activities, even if they were more focused on a magical scenario. And just like it would normally be, clubs that were able to perform well and garner attention would receive special treatment and additional funding from the school.

"...It is for this reason that the week of lunacy has fallen upon us once again." Mari finished up her explanation with the air of a parent that was looking down at their bothersome child.

"The recruiting tactics that people use are often disruptive enough to interrupt classes. Placing a 1 week time limit on the period that clubs are allowed to recruit students doesn't help the situation either."

Such was the fate of a school that only allowed 100 students in per year. With the paltry amount of new students each year and large clubs that could run upwards of 20 people each, it was unsurprising that the students left over would be fought for fiercely when the school gave such incentives for succeeding.

Tatsuya, while making his way through the bento that Miyuki had made this morning listened to the explanation given by the pair of Mayumi and Mari.

"With so many different clubs setting up their displays in the commons and tensions running so high, it's not uncommon for fist fights to break out. Students who are known to have scored highly on the entrance exams are especially valuable to the clubs. In some cases, magic has gone flying."

Burying the desire to ask how students would obtain that type of information in the first place, Tatsuya actually made his first response, though it was a question. "I thought that carrying CAD's around was disallowed by the school."

At this, Mari could only sigh once again; it seemed as if this wasn't an uncommon occurrence. "While that is true, the school allows students in the clubs to carry around CAD's during this week in order to allow them to perform 'demonstrations,' that, more often than not, results in a brawl erupting between members of two clubs."

Tatsuya barely resisted the practice of placing his hand to his face as he heard Mari's explanation. If the school was to allow students to perform demonstrations, it should have only been in a controlled setting with teacher supervision.

Before Tatsuya could voice the obvious question, Mayumi stepped in to alleviate the confusion.

"The reason that the school allows this is probably because they want a better performance in the Nine Schools Competition. Seeing as how this is the final goal, the administration most likely doesn't mind letting a few rules break as long as there is a greater chance of recruiting more talented students."

The Nine Schools Competition; a contest held each year by the Magic University Affiliated Magic High Schools. From First High to Ninth High, each school would send representatives to a different venue each year in order to compete in various events for the pride of their institution.

Not only was this a competition between the schools, but also a simple and efficient way to make magic a more accepted idea. To normal people, magicians were entities on an entirely other level; it was in the hopes that normal people could learn to understand magic that these events were made open to the public.

"Well that's pretty much the gist of it. In any case, we'll be starting patrols right after school. Just come to HQ once you're done with classes."

"Understood."

Whether or not he actually accepted these explanations or he had simply given up trying to make sense of the situation, only Tatsuya knew. On the other hand, it wasn't as if he was able to do anything about it, so perhaps it would be more accurate to say that he was simply resigned to his fate.

~~-Line Break-~~

"Miyuki? Are you… okay?" The asker of this question was none other than a rather pretty brown haired girl with her hair styled so that two short pigtails came down to embrace her neckline.

The end of classes for the day was rapidly approaching, the instructor for their class having just left a few moments ago. As soon as the instructor had left however, two girls had immediately turned around in their seats and began talking to Miyuki.

"I'm fine Honoka. Just worried about what will happen when Onii-sama goes on patrol this afternoon." Mitsui Honoka, one of the two girls that Miyuki had befriended in Class 1-A of First High School. The girl was somewhat awkward and clumsy in her social skills, but overall very sweet; someone who would give off the feeling of an "innocent high school student." At least, more so than any of her recent acquaintances.

"Eh? But at the very worst, Tatsuya-san would simply be unable to do anything and have to call for help from one of the other committee members." It was not yet common knowledge that Tatsuya possessed such an extremely high anti-personnel combat ability; thus, Miyuki was unable to bring this up. This however, was not the point.

"...None of the upperclassmen, nor Course 1 students will respect Yotsuba-san's older brother."

At this point, a new voice entered the conversation. Kitayama Shizuku was among the best in her school year, bested only by Miyuki on the entrance exams. She was also much more quiet and thoughtful than the brunette that she called her best friend.

"Oh…" Honoka, suddenly confronted with this fact, was unable to offer a rebuttle.

Though Miyuki knew that it was a simple matter for her brother to interevene in an incident and erase the notion that he was incapable of defending himself, the sheer fact that it was Tatsuya made this possiblity very low. Her brother could care less what the Course 1 students though of him; if anything, he would much prefer to remain under the radar for as long as possible.

It was specifically because Miyuki knew her brother's personality that she was so apprehensive of him being on the Public Morals Committee.

"In any case, isn't it better if Yotsuba-san's brother doesn't have to get into a skirmish in the first place?" Once again, Shizuku tried to calm the situation down through use of solid logic.

"I suppose…" Miyuki was seemingly quelled for the time being, but then managed to fire up for a completely different reason.

"However Shizuku, I've already told you to call me 'Miyuki' haven't I?" Shizuku had stubbornly refused to address Miyuki by her given name; instead choosing to address her as "Yotsuba-san." Her reasons for doing so were completely valid. Given that the Kitayama Conglomerate was a major financial power, and Shizuku being the daughter of the magnate that ran it, it wasn't so simple for her to address a direct heir of the Yotsuba Clan by their given name.

"...I'd like to respectfully decline, Yotsuba-san." It seemed as if this pattern wouldn't change in the near future.

Though she was not to the point of sighing openly, Miyuki inwardly hoped that this trend would soon end. Having someone refer to her as "Yotsuba" constantly reminded her that the time that she would have to take up the role as Clan head was rapidly approaching.

"Well, Miyuki's onii-san is at least able to keep a level head right? So he shouldn't get into any trouble." Honoka was fully aware that her attempt at changing the subject was woefully obvious. Nevertheless, the two involved were tactful enough to let her do so.

"Yes… but the situations he may become a victim of might have Onii-sama getting hurt…" Though Miyuki knew on no uncertain terms that a normal high school student would have little chance to even lay a finger on Tatsuya, her natural concern for him trumped any logic in this department.

Speaking of which, Honoka and Shizuku had only spoken to Tatsuya once, during the time when the first years had been caught by Mari and Mayumi during their little skirmish. Part of the reason that Miyuki had become such fast friends with the pair was that they had personally come up afterwards and apologized for the incident.

"I hope that Tatsuya-san doesn't get hurt…" Though this line from Honoka sparked a small spark of irritation within Miyuki, she found herself unable to be truly jealous of someone who so earnestly admired the same person that she did.

Before their conversation could continue any further however, the bell signifying the end of class rang.

~~-Line Break-~~

"Why are you here?!"

Though he had anticipated this sort of reaction, Tatsuya was amazed at how Morisaki was able to immediately able to spit out that kind of phrase in front of so many other people.

"Is that the first thing you say when you meet someone again?"

He knew exactly what kind of reaction this would provoke from the other, and yet Tatsuya couldn't find it within himself to care honestly.

"What?! Are you trying to provoke me?"

"Shut up newcomer!"

A quick roar from the head of the table that they were both standing at effectively quelled the antagonistic Morisaki. Currently Tatsuya was standing at the long table that occupied a significant part of the Public Morals Committee HQ; various upperclassmen sat in the seats leading up to where Mari was standing up. None of them had failed to notice the distinct lack of an 8 petaled flower on his uniform.

"If they were not a part of the Public Morals Committee, nobody would be at a meeting specifically for the Committee. Get that through your head, if nothing else."

"Y-yes! I apologize…" Previously red-faced, the blood in Morisaki's face quickly drained as he was reprimanded by Mari.

Sighing, the latter spoke with less venom in her voice. "Whatever, just sit down." True to her disposition, Mari was not one who enjoyed tormenting those weaker than her.

"Alright, if everyone is here than we're going to begin." Mari started the meeting as soon as the final members of the Public Morals Committee had taken a seat at the table.

"The week of club recruitment is upon us once again. For us, it means that we're going to be stretched thin for the week trying to prevent any incidents from occurring. Last year there were a few of you that managed to become involved in actually starting these skirmishes." She gave a steely look to the group, not picking out any individuals, but not sparing them either.

"This year will not be last year. Public Morals Committee members will not be the ones causing trouble? Am I clear?" Nobody dared to answer otherwise.

"Then, on to the next order of business. Yotsuba, Morisaki, stand up."

The two mentioned broke off their constant glaring at one another to respond to Mari's command.

"Morisaki Shun of Class 1-A and Yotsuba Tatsuya of Class 1-E. These are the two that were recruited to fill in the gap of the two that graduated last year."

Though they were introduced in the same manner, it was clear to everyone present that they had completely different reactions to it.

Morisaki was still pale and clearly nervous, yet his willingness to listen showed his enthusiasm for recognition.

As if in direct contrast, Tatsuya had the same expression as always. Cool and collected, even the small movement that was involved in standing up had him looking nothing but efficient in his actions.

"Who will he be paired up with?" Though the small murmuring had been a foregone conclusion, the first person to raise this question was a second year named Okada, one of the members that had been elected by the staff.

"As I explained earlier, everybody will patrol on their own during this week. Those two are no exceptions to this rule." Though she didn't show it, Mari was irritated that she even had to deal with this.

Perhaps it was just the fact that she hadn't shown this side of herself before, but Tatsuya was still surprised as to how belligerent Mari was being at the moment. Instead of quelling the conflict, Mari seemed to be the one initiating all of it. Despite all that he knew about Mari already, he couldn't help but be concerned that the leader of the committee that was to regulate behavior in the school was so ready to pick a fight with others.

"No, I'm fine." Okada waved his hands in a motion that signified that he was giving up. "It's all on you Chief."

Tatsuya was sure that, had his name not been Yotsuba, there would have been much more complaint on the matter. Thankfully, the name had proven useful for once.

"Then we will be concluding this meeting. I will explain the basics to Morisaki and Yotsuba, everyone else move out!"

Once again, Tatsuya was left to wonder what era they were in for Mari to use such vocabulary. Everyone else however, treated this as if it were a daily occurrence and beat their right fist to their chest. Tatsuya would later learn that this was tradition for the Committee, as was saying "Good Morning" no matter what time of day it was.

"First, take these." She handed both Tatsuya and Morisaki an armband that was identical to the one that all the upperclassmen wore, as well as a video recorder.

"The recorders should fit inside the pocket on your uniform. As for usage of CAD's, you do not require permission from others to use them. If there are any unauthorized abuses of this privilege however, you will be removed from the committee and subjected to a penalty that is more severe than that of normal students."

Both of them nodded in affirmation.

"Good, I'm going to transmit the communication frequency for the committee now. All reports and instructions will be made through this frequency. Confirm that you've received it and move out."

Again, they both nodded. This time however, Tatsuya had a question in mind.

"What is it?" Mari gave the go ahead to Tatsuya, who had his hand raised slightly to signify his intentions.

"May I use the CAD's that are in the committee office?" He indicated units on the shelf that he had organized yesterday.

"...I don't mind, but why?" Though she didn't mention it, Tatsuya already knew the real question in Mari's head.

Why use these when you have a personal high-performance model?

Seeing as how it would only result in an awkward silence if he ignored this question, Tatsuya made the decision to explain.

"While it is true that these are old models, they are also top of the line products with high-specs used by professionals. With the fervent following that they have because of their extensive ability to be customized, these units would fetch a rather large price at an any type of auction. "

Mari's eyes widened as she heard this explanation.

"And the whole time we were treating them like junk in the heap…" She let off a 'tch!" noise before Tatsuya spoke again.

"I'm sure that Nakajou-senpai could have explained this to you had you asked her." Though she had that kind of personality, Azusa was no doubt knowledgeable enough to inform Mari, had the latter bothered to ask.

"Nakajou is too terrified to even come into this room."

Ah… that explained a lot. Certainly, the weak-willed Azusa would be outright frozen in fear at the thought of being faced with the Public Morals Committee members who, more often than not, were physically imposing.

Given this kind of answer, Tatsuya could only nod his head in understanding as he moved to collect the two CAD's on top of the shelf.

"Two… you really are something else." Remembering the words that she had spoken before, Mari simply had her opinion reinforced by this course of action.

Seeing the small smirk on Mari's face, as well as Tatsuya attaching the two CAD's to his arm, Morisaki could do little but clench his teeth in frustration.

~~-Line Break-~~

Though Tatsuya had been briefed on the chaotic activity during the week of club recruitment, he had only expected the rowdiness of students to be slightly above that of normal high school students.

"We saw her first!"

"She came over to our stall first!"

"You… are you trying to pick a fight?!"

This however, was far beyond his expectations. Not only were they numerous, but the fights that seemed to be breaking out amongst all the clubs always seemed to spark within a few moments of them speaking to one another. Perhaps it was fortune smiling upon him, but Tatsuya had yet to take action because of the omnipresence of the other members of the Public Morals Committee.

'It would seem that my initial assumptions about the school were highly inaccurate...'

Just as his thoughts wandered, another fight broke out in front of him, this time involving multiple clubs. In the middle of them were two first year, or so he assume, girls.

"E-Excuse me we'd just like to see all the- wah!"

"...Too crowded."

Though this scene was not entirely uncommon, the fact that Tatsuya did not have a choice but to intervene this time, was.

'A small tremor should do.' With this idea in mind, Tatsuya manipulated the CAD on his wrist, a very faint amount of Psion light being emitted as he took a very purposeful step on the ground and invoked his magic at the same time.

Almost immediately, the ground shook with a slight tremor. Not enough to knock anyone over, but plenty if you were looking to disturb their balance. Not missing his chance, Tatsuya ran through the crowd, grabbing both girls by the wrist and tugging them along. Luckily, their surprised reactions made them quite receptive to any type of persuasion.

Though taking them around the corner would have probably been enough, Tatsuya wasn't one to do things partway, and thus, led them straight out of the courtyard where most of the demonstrations were going on and into the gymnasium.

"Are you both unharmed?" After making sure that they had no pursuers from the courtyard, Tatsuya finally turned around to verify the status of the two he had brought with him.

"You are…"

"Yotsuba-san's older brother…"

The two girls that he had helped were none other than Miyuki's friends that he had only met once, Mitsui Honoka and Kitayama Shizuku.

"...Kitayama-san, Mitsui-san, I apologize for dragging you along so roughly." Though it would seem biased that Tatsuya would apologize to these two and not to others, he did not see any other way to avoid their scorn. If they were to be Miyuki's friends from now on, it would do him no favors to be on their bad side.

"I-It's fine Tatsuya-san!" Honoka, seemingly alarmed by Tatsuya's sudden apology, waved her hands back and forth frantically. "Looking for clubs is something that we were already told was going to be a harsh experience!"

Though the words chosen could have been better, Honoka accurately described the situation without much trouble.

"...We were in a bit of a pinch anyways." As always, Shizuku chimed in after Honoka's initial reaction. Seeing that the both of them were completely fine, Tatsuya nodded and proceeded to surprise them once again.

"If you are willing to tolerate me, I can accompany you while you search for a club. I will be on patrol during this time, thus it is unlikely that an incident similar to what you two were just caught up in will happen again."

Tatsuya did not simply offer out of the goodness of his heart. This would be a decent opportunity to get to know the people that Miyuki had made friends out of. And while he had no doubt over his sister as a judge of character, Tatsuya found no harm in simply becoming more friendly with them.

"That would be very helpful Yotsuba-san." It was Shizuku who managed to reply, though it was more because Honoka had turned around with a panicked look in her eyes the moment that Tatsuya had voiced this suggestion.

And so after a few more moments of awkward staring, the two girls continued onward, with Tatsuya trailing behind them. Of course, he maintained a proper distance as to not be mistaken as a stalker.

"Neh, Shizuku…"

"What is it?" Though they were not completely out of earshot, it would be difficult, even for someone with perfect hearing in a silent room, to understand what they were saying to each other at their volume.

"Don't you feel like this is fate? Like one of those shows where the young girl meets the handsome boy and…!" Though her shy disposition did not allow her to completely express herself, it was clear to Shizuku, who had known her for so many years, exactly what her best friend was implying.

"...Honoka"

"Yes?"

"I didn't know that you were so childish."

"T-That's awful Shizuku!"

"..."

"Is there something wrong?" Catching on to Honoka's outburst, Tatsuya couldn't help but interject on their conversation. Once again, it would be Shizuku who answered in place of a flustered Honoka. The two truly functioned as one unit.

"It's nothing Yotsuba-san…"

Hearing himself being addressed that way once again, Tatsuya could feel himself grow weary.

"Kitayama-san, please simply address me as Tatsuya."

It was exceedingly rare for Tatsuya to make such a request. Had the pair known that, they would have no doubt been suspicious; luckily for Tatsuya, they didn't.

"Then… Tatsuya-san is fine?" It was definitely strange. For some reason, while she avoided addressing Miyuki by her given name like the plague, doing the same with Tatsuya seemed completely natural to her.

"It would be preferred, yes."

"...Then Shizuku."

"Excuse me?"

The black-haired girl turned around and walked up to him before speaking again.

"Just call me Shizuku. It would be unfair for you to keep addressing me as Kitayama…"

'...She's surprisingly childish about this sort of thing.'

Stunned into inaction for a moment by Shizuku's honest request, Tatsuya finally nodded his assent.

"T-Then Tatsuya-san, please call me Honoka as well!"

The two looked up to find that Honoka had come up to them as well. Tatsuya however, did not miss the victorious gleam in Shizuku's eyes. For what reason, he did not know.

"Of course…" Sensing that staying like this any longer would begin to generate some unwanted rumors, Tatsuya agreed to her request easily.

"Shall we be going then?" Tatsuya gestured forwards, directly towards the 2nd gymnasium where the Kendo club would be performing. Though he doubted that either of these two would actually join the club, Tatsuya had already been surprise by both of them.

"...Let's go." After staring at Tatsuya for something close to a minute, Shizuku finally acquiesced to his request and continued forwards. Part of her willingness to proceed was probably due to the large amount of noise coming from the building itself.

It was not until they actually got inside that they were able to discern the panic in the yells and chatter among the crowd. Once again, Tatsuya was forced to move on his own. This time, he doubted he would be allowed to solve the problem as smoothly as he had the issue with Shizuku and Honoka.

"Shizuku, please stay here with Honoka." It was doubtful at best that the two would actually listen to him, but the words had to be said nevertheless. Making his way to the front of the crowd, Tatsuya finally found the source of the commotion.

"Public Morals Committee, please stop what you are doing and lower your CAD." Turning on the recorder in his breast pocket, Tatsuya spoke these words as he viewed what seemed to be a student holding a shinai that was emitting a high pitched screeching noise.

'Sonic Blade...'

This magic functioned by applying Oscillation-type magic directly to the particles in an object. Once done, the rapid motions of the particles would function just as a mechanical saw did, allowing the user to make use of the object as a cutting edge. It was able to shear through metal when used by an experienced magician, and certainly enough to leave serious injuries on a human.

And yet, Tatsuya's eyes showed no fear as the attention was turned to him.

No, perhaps it would be more accurate to say that there was no emotion at all as he calmly analyzed the type of magic he was facing. The same lack of emotion that had come from his bout with Hattori the other day. The one that told of a foregone conclusion.

"A Public Morals Committee Member?"

"But he's a Weed isn't he?'

Once again, the general reaction came once the crowd saw the lack of an emblem on Tatsuya's uniform.

What he was concerned with however, was the upperclassman that was now charging at a female student that tried to parry with her own shinai. Unfortunately, the difference between one reinforced with magic and one without was all too obvious.

Luckily, the worst failed to occur.

Moving with a speed that few in the building could even react to, Tatsuya positioned himself between the two upperclassmen and crossed both arms in front of himself. Immediately, a high pitched Psion noise spread out over the second gymnasium. The feeling of nausea that this brought on however, was not enough to avert the eyes that followed the path of the shinai that was now on a direct course to Tatsuya's two arms.

"Hey, Kirihara! That's too far!"

Unfortunately, despite the cries of his clubmates, the swing that the now named Kirihara was in was too far gone. Their worries however, proved to be unnecessary.

Weaving around the outstretched blade, Tatsuya immediately circled behind Kirihara; grabbing his wrist and twisting the shinai out of his hands while simultaneously pushing down on his shoulder. The result was the clattering sound of a definitively wooden shinai hitting the ground along with Kirihara's body, now held in a restraint by Tatsuya.

"Yotsuba Tatsuya, requesting a stretcher in the 2nd gymnasium. I have apprehended one student who seems to be injured."

Exchanging his other hand for a knee, the words that Tatsuya had spoken deftly into his communicator seemed to echo throughout the gymnasium.

~~-End-~~

A/N

First chapter after a hiatus. Hopefully it's up to the standards that were set by the previous chapters. Anyways, not much to say besides that.

As always, thank you for reading, constructive criticism is always welcome.


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